Conference to Address Prisoner Reentry Issues and Supportive Resources
CHARLESTON, W.Va.—The Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston’s Office of Prison Ministry and the West Virginia Division of Corrections are co-sponsoring the “Prisoner Reentry Issues and Supportive Resources” conference.
The conference is free and will be held Oct. 30 from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at St. John XXIII Pastoral Center in Charleston, W.Va., exploring a number of issues.
“This conference is going to investigate the ways that the faith community can get involved with supporting our ex-offenders as they start coming back into the community,” said Rev. Mr. Rue Thompson, director of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston’s Office of Prison Ministry for State Facilities. “It will bring an enlightenment of what their needs are, what hurdles they have as they come back into society—especially those who have been incarcerated for an extended period of time.”
The keynote speaker will be Dr. Edward J. Latessa, a professor and director of the School of Criminal Justice at the University of Cincinnati. Latessa has published more than 140 works in the area of criminal justice, corrections and juvenile justice and is co-author of seven books, including “Corrections in the Community” and “Corrections in America.” Latessa has directed more than 150 funded research projects including studies of day reporting centers, juvenile justice programs, drug courts, prison programs, intensive supervision programs, halfway houses and drug programs. He received his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in 1979.
The conference will also feature an ex-offender panel as well as breakout sessions that will include a number of speakers and topics. Judy Fitzgerald, director of Parole Services for the West Virginia Department of Corrections, will be addressing housing issues; Chad Ketchum, WorkForce West Virginia, state veterans coordinator, will speak about job issues; Kathy Paxton, director of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Services’ Division on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, will be talking about substance abuse; Betsy C. Jividen, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia, will discuss domestic violence; and Tammy Miller, Veterans Justice Outreach specialist, will address veterans affairs programs.
The presenters will also be part of a panel toward the end of the conference.
“For many years it has been clear that more must be done to help our brothers and sisters who are leaving prison to reenter society, to do the reentry successfully,” said Very Rev. Brian O’Donnell, S.J., executive secretary of the Catholic Conference of West Virginia. “The Catholic Conference and the diocese and many other groups are vitally interested in discovering the most effective ways to help ex-offenders really rejoin society and become useful citizens once again.”
Lodging is available at the pastoral center for $42 for a single room per night and $32 for a double room per person, per night.
For more information or to register, contact Christy Ramsey at (304) 380-0155.