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Class X: Week 12
December 22, 2008 Our advisors work so hard for so little thanks. Imagine spending hours editing business plan sections and getting market research for somebody else (in prison!) while worrying about how you’re going to pass your next exam. These students sacrifice so much for us, and we love them for it. Read more ... Class X: Week 11 December 22, 2008 We spent several hours with Keith today. Keith is Ms. Rohr’s spiritual advisor, a brilliant man who never ceases to enlighten us. Today we are working on manuscript studies, taking passages from the Bible and breaking them down to arrive at their true meaning. I’ve read some of these verses a hundred times, yet never understood what they really meant. A person like Keith is priceless. Read more ... Class X: Week 10 December 22, 2008 The character assessment being scheduled today took me off guard. Moods are up, people are giggling and carrying on, then all of a sudden the negative character assessment is announced. It’s a program that works, and this evaluation is one of the main contributing factors to that success. Still, it’s a horrible feeling being that raw, that real. We have to write down who we think is at the bottom of our class, as far as character goes. It’s gut wrenching. Tomorrow is going to be rough. No dancing. No jingles. No silly hats. Read more ... Class X: Week 9 December 22, 2008 As we speak, executives are on their way here to help us hone our selling skills. It’ll be done in a speed dating format. We’ll give a pitch for a few minutes, get feedback, and then move on to the next hard sell. We’ve got our work cut out for us. Read more ... Class X: Week 8 December 22, 2008 We spent all day on the computers, making corrections to parts of our business plans. Our MBA advisors are giving us awesome feedback. I know all of our presentations are going to be really great! I’m really thankful to be receiving all of this help from an MBA student. It will be interesting to meet them next week at our MBA workshop. Read more ... Class X: Week 7 November 17, 2008 An emotional day from the moment the sun rose. First and foremost, our brother Reggie, a Class IX graduate, left this morning. It’s a mixed emotion when someone you enjoy leaves the very prison that you will remain in. You are happy for him, that he will get to go off into the world to his family. But having a charismatic, nice, and respectful person to be around only makes our time that much easier. While it’s sad to see them go, it’s always amazing to see them come back to visit us in a suit and tie. Read more ... Class X: Week 6 November 17, 2008 I think PEP has the most interesting beginning of any class I have ever attended. Everyday is different and no one knows what to expect. Let me give you an idea of how class starts almost daily. Read more ... Class X: Week 5 November 17, 2008 We started the week fresh with a pop quiz. I’m fairly confident that this was the 50th test we’ve taken. Okay, maybe only the 15th. We also got to review a chapter test on the economics of one unit. Last week we learned how to define and calculate our revenue models and how they apply to an income statement. So, naturally, we had a test on it. Read more ... Class X: Week 4 November 17, 2008 It’s been quite the weekend. Hurricane Ike knocked the power out at 1:30 a.m. Saturday morning (9/13). Even amongst some of the worst conditions and high levels of anxiety, the positive and uplifting attitude of my PEP brothers radiates like sunlight off each of us. Read more ... Class X: Week 3 November 16, 2008 Today we got our grades back from our first chapter test out of the Entrepreneurship book. We all did pretty well. We’re learning a lot about business already. Read more ... Class X: Week 2 November 16, 2008 Week two has begun, and if you think last week was strange, then this week has been beyond bizarre. Friday night the Major on the unit told Ms. Rohr that evacuees from a unit near Beaumont would be housed here. This was due to the predicted path of Hurricane Gustav. Because we in PEP are determined to be the best behaved men on this unit, we were asked to all be housed together ... in the PEP classroom. Our cells were to be used to house inmates from another unit for a few days. On Saturday morning, we all packed our things and moved into our temporary new home. Read more ... Class X: Week 1 November 16, 2008 This place is weird. In all my prison experience, never before have I walked through a “tunnel of love.” Imagine opening up a door and seeing 60 other people standing face to face, side by side, arms extending high in the air, hands touching, to form a human tunnel. Then imagine them welcoming you through with hugs at the end. In prison. Read more ... |
