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Turning crack dealers into chief executives
    #9826050 - 02/19/09 11:54 AM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Turning crack dealers into chief executives
15 February 2009 - BBC


The smartly dressed young woman scribbles some percentages onto a board.

As she talks about excel spread sheets, due diligence, final contracts and $10m (£6.9m) deals, about 40 men sit in rows behind her listen intently and take notes. It may sound just like any other business school class, but the students are surrounded by the high fences and razor wire of the Cleveland Correctional Facility, just north of Houston.

Four years ago Catherine Rohr was a venture capitalist on Wall Street. Then she left her job with its six-figure salary and decided to create the Prison Entrepreneurship Program, or PEP. Since then she has shared her professional experience with almost 400 inmates.

It all started when Ms Rohr was invited into another Texas prison by a fellow executive from her church. At first she was not very interested. "I didn't know any prisoners personally, but I thought 'just lock 'em up and throw away the key'," she says. "I saw them as a waste of tax dollars. I was very brutal in my approach."

But Catherine then recognised that many were ordinary human beings who had made some serious mistakes in their lives.

She also spotted something else, something missed by the majority of prison visitors, namely the men's 'ROI' or return on investment potential. "It wasn't just their potential, it was their proven abilities", she says. "They understand basic leadership and management principles, profitability. "They don't all understand risk management as well as they should because they all got busted when they came to prison, but when it comes to execution and marketing - they get it."

Ms Rohr realised that influential convicted felons could be America's most overlooked talent pool. Felipe Dias is one of the convicts Catherine plans to redirect into a legitimate enterprise. He was once a lieutenant of the Mexican Mafia gang and made tens of thousands of dollars a month importing drugs and selling firearms and stolen cars.

I ask the soft spoken, heavily tattooed man what made him capable of leading 800 gang members.

He looks me straight in the eye and replies: "When I made a decision it was a firm decision. I had to use investigative skills. "You see, before you hurt somebody or you promote somebody in the gang you have to investigate everything from A to Z. You cannot leave a single stone unturned."

But how do you make men like Dias channel their energies and skills into a more positive and legitimate direction?

Like many people, Ms Rohr is familiar with The Wire, an American TV series set in gritty west Baltimore, which shows how the drug trade explicitly follows the rules of capitalism. One of the characters, a high ranking dealer attends evening classes at a business school to learn the rules of running an enterprise.

"Our goal is not to turn a good crack dealer into a better one", she says. "We aim to transform the whole personality".

A fresh start

Dias says he wants to start a tailoring shop when he gets out as he has learned to sew recently and often alters prison uniforms, including those of the guards. But will such a modest enterprise really satisfy him after years of highly lucrative crime?

"I've made a decision that I will start from nothing", he says. "Sometimes when I am in my cell I tremble from fear because now I know I have to do everything the right way this time around."

PEP has created a network of top executives and business schools around the country to help the inmates achieve the American dream. Prisoners get advice on business plans, operating budgets and market research. They learn to make elevator pitches in front of millionaire executives and Harvard students.

Most funding comes from individuals and private foundations, but the scheme also receives donations from corporations. John Jackson, an oil pipeline boss, got an award for his work with PEP from President George Bush last summer.

In his sleek high-rise office, he explains how he began thinking about the plight of ex-cons after his own brother was convicted for drink driving and couldn't get a job on his release. He says many businesses would like to give felons a chance, but they are afraid of the risks involved with a 50 to 70% national reoffending rate.

"The beauty of PEP is that there has been an extremely rigorous programme up front", he says.

"You can come into the prison and see these guys who have really worked hard to do a business plan and they have expressed a sincere desire to change. "So employers can take a chance on an individual but it is not just a random chance."

Jimmy Vigil was sent to Texas in 1999 to find new members for the Milwaukee Kings, the biggest Latino crime syndicate in Chicago. At first he enjoyed the power and the money, but he was convicted of attempted murder, sent to prison and the glamour of his street life faded and he began to feel remorse for his actions.

Vigil saw a PEP flyer on the prison notice board, signed up and four months later he got an interview. After all, he did have experience in sales and recruitment. Following an intense screening process of 1,100 applicants from 65 Texas prisons, he was one of 69 selected.

"I felt truly blessed to be one of the 69," he says.

"They give you a clean slate. They don't look at you as a felon or a convict or somebody who does wrong. They look at you as someone with potential."

Permanent change

But staying the course is tough. Usually only two thirds of the class will graduate.

Some drop out because they cannot handle the peer-driven character assessments. Others cannot manage the workload, with 40 exams in 17 weeks. The programme's reoffending rate, admittedly based on a carefully selected group of students, is less than 5% and Ms Rohr is determined to keep it that way.

Entrepreneurial success stories include a man who served 10 years for leading a cocaine ring and is now running a tree trimming company with a turnover of more than $1m a year.

Another man, who served a 30 year sentence for multiple murders, got out aged 55 and is now profitably producing leather purses, belts and Bible covers.

Some 43 of the 370 graduates have started their own businesses.

But Catherine says she is also proud of those who come out, manage to hold down steady jobs and become taxpayers rather than tax consumers. More than 97% are employed at an hourly rate of about $10.50 within four weeks of release, well above the American minimum wage.

Troy, a PEP graduate, did not have many roles models when he was growing up. His mother was an addict who died of an overdose and his elder brother is still selling drugs, but he decided he wanted to take another path. Now he has completed his sentence and has just opened a car repair workshop in South Houston.

"When I was young I thought it was cool to sell drugs and cool to be violent," he says.

"It took a lot of beating my head against a wall to realise that wasn't right. With PEP I had somebody to believe in me and mentor me and coach me for the first time in my life." Proudly he shows me the new weapons he has to help him go straight; a box of tools and an air impact gun for changing tyres.

Then I notice the banknote taped to the door.

"It's the first dollar I earned," says Troy with a grin. "I guess I ought to frame it."


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Offlinebongoboy2000
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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Green_T]
    #9826326 - 02/19/09 12:42 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

this is really cool. I think everyone in prison should have this opportunity.
well...almost everyone.
and WTF, 30 years for multiple murders!?? that's no worse than a drug felony. FUCK YOU AMERICA


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Offlinehockeyplyr1057
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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Green_T]
    #9826337 - 02/19/09 12:44 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

good to see she can help people who need it, instead of letting them rot in prison


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Green_T]
    #9826344 - 02/19/09 12:45 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Haha, great headline.


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: bongoboy2000]
    #9826431 - 02/19/09 01:06 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Fuck that!
I don't get free education and I'm a law abidding citizen for the most part so why should felons get free education at tax payers expense?

they're already getting medical and dental benefits.

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Invisibleshroomzey
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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: eris]
    #9826436 - 02/19/09 01:07 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Wow, this is great.  I hope this inspires more prisons to focus on rehabilitation rather than incarceration.  Repeated violent offenders who don't comply with rehabilitation... let them rot.  Everyone else should have a second chance, anyone can turn things around.  Even prisoners have skills, exploit those skills and we'll have a much safer, stronger, smarter America.


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Jive turkey]
    #9826448 - 02/19/09 01:10 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Quote:

Jive turkey said:
Fuck that!
I don't get free education and I'm a law abidding citizen for the most part so why should felons get free education at tax payers expense?

they're already getting medical and dental benefits.




How about rather than letting them rot for 20 years, and you the tax payer continue to pay for that... you focus on quick and reliable rehabilitation, and push that prisoner back into society as a productive citizen.

Or wait, lemme think, you could rehab prisoners into ENTREPRENEURS in which case creates many more jobs, and introduces more leadership into the population.

Your criticism is short sited.

Do you think any prisoner gives a fuck about being part of society when they've got X amount of years to rot with no help?  Once they realize themselves, and you give them something to run with, they've got no where else to go but up.  Help them, don't cage them.  But for those that can't be helped, let them rot.


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Find a respected member of the community and study them.  I give thanks to: RogerRabbit, agar, hyphae, Nibin, fahtster, The shroomy 1, monstermitch, FooMan, HippieChick, Blue Helix, eatyualive, mycofile, and many, many more.
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Edited by shroomzey (02/19/09 01:11 PM)

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InvisibleEgo Death
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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Green_T]
    #9826621 - 02/19/09 01:43 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Awesome

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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Jive turkey]
    #9827026 - 02/19/09 03:01 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Quote:

Jive turkey said:
Fuck that!
I don't get free education and I'm a law abidding citizen for the most part so why should felons get free education at tax payers expense?

they're already getting medical and dental benefits.




The article stated that
Quote:

Most funding comes from individuals and private foundations, but the scheme also receives donations from corporations.




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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Dementous]
    #9827247 - 02/19/09 03:44 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Quote:

Most funding comes from individuals and private foundations, but the scheme also receives donations from corporations.




thats what they say...I could be wrong but in my state we pay an average oh $70 a day per inmate with an average stay of 7 months

I'll leave the rest of the math for you

but dont get me wrong I feel that is awesome that they get a chance to get back on their feet and change things around! Props to them!!


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: bermuda2807]
    #9827523 - 02/19/09 04:26 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

I think this is a great idea.  Prisoners are a drain on our resources and we end up paying less in taxes in the long run if we attempt to rehabilitate them. 

However, some people would rather spend more money to keep them locked up than invest in them so that they can be productive members of society.  Those are usually the same people who don't mind spending more than half of our taxes on a wasteful military.


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: shroomzey]
    #9827794 - 02/19/09 05:01 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Quote:

shroomzey said:
Wow, this is great.  I hope this inspires more prisons to focus on rehabilitation rather than incarceration.  Repeated violent offenders who don't comply with rehabilitation... let them rot.  Everyone else should have a second chance, anyone can turn things around.  Even prisoners have skills, exploit those skills and we'll have a much safer, stronger, smarter America.




:yesnod:

the whole feed em bread and water and let them crap in a bucket (yeah, these things where how prisons where in the "good old days") thing doesnt work, hasnt worked, and i definitely agree with the fact that rehabilitation should also come with the punishment (so long as those NOT willing to do so just get punished)

the cost in tax dollars, etc, are nothing compared to the economic impact that something like this does, too bad its seen as "bleeding heart liberal crap" by so many that cant see the forest for the trees.


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Cannabischarlie]
    #9827873 - 02/19/09 05:11 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

yeah yeah, I guess I'm just booty hurt by the fact that I have to pay for my education, medical care, and dental benefits. Yet someone who murdered people gets all that for free.

I'm sure this will definitely have a positive impact on the economy ,but I'm still going to bitch about it.

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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Jive turkey]
    #9828101 - 02/19/09 05:41 PM (15 years, 1 month ago)

Quote:

Jive turkey said:
Fuck that!
I don't get free education and I'm a law abidding citizen for the most part so why should felons get free education at tax payers expense?

they're already getting medical and dental benefits.




Like it or not, they have skill sets you don't.  The one guy managed 800 men under him in the gang.

How big is the gang you run?


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Re: Turning crack dealers into chief executives [Re: Green_T]
    #20811113 - 11/08/14 07:11 PM (9 years, 4 months ago)

RECYCLED ENERGY IS THE BEST ENERGY!!!!!

P.L.U.R.    :heart: I AM living proof....


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