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For the Cumberland Times-NewsCUMBERLAND — Over 1,800Allegany County high school students were recently sent to prison; and for all the right reasons.To be more precise, area high school students were given an opportunity to tour the new Federal Correctional Institution in Cumberland, hear about career opportunities with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and also learn about how substance abuse and failure to consider the consequences of one’s actions can havefar reaching and dramatic affects later on in life.This special program was put together by FCI staff under thedirection of Warden Dennis R. Bidwell, at the request of Dr. Robert J. Terrill, Superintendent of the Allegany County Board of Education and Mary Louise Jones, Board of Education Director of Communication.According to Bidwell, having the new medium security prison completed and within weeks of receiving medium security inmates presented a unique opportunity for the high school students.“We wanted the students to know that, with the right combination of education and experience, good careers with the Bureau of Prisons would be available,”, he said. “We also took advantage of the opportunity todebunk some of the myth and mystique about incarceration. We wanted to the kids to see it for what it realty is; the loss of liberty and freedom. Prison is a place where virtually every facet of your dally life is controlled in an effort to maintain order.”The point was well taken, as students sat in their eight-by-ten-foot cells, imagining what it would be like to spend 10 or 12 years in the same place.“The kids realty took in the information,” said Stephen Finger, FCI Executive Assistant, who coordinated the prison’s end of the program.“The stark visual images of the security fencing and the bars on the cells, along with the description of inmate daily life, made an impact, I am sure.”As a follow-up to the student tours, high school counselors and Board of Education pupil services personnel also toured the facility and participated in a two-way dialogue with FCI personnel and training staff.The purpose was to keep the school staff informed about what future opportunities will be available and explain the Bureau of Prisons expectations regarding entry level candidates.Although tours of the medium security have come to a close, the correctional institution and the school system will continue to look for additional programs for the benefit of Allegany County.
Newspaper Details
Cumberland Sunday Times News
Cumberland, Maryland, US
Sun, Apr 02, 1995
Page 14
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
WV, USA 01 May 2020
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