No Excuses 13 Principles

I believe with complete faith…

1. that nobody can stand between me and my goals. 

2. that I take full responsibility for all of my actions.

3. that I have no excuse for not being a good person, parent, spouse, child & friend.

4. that I’m not entitled to anything and I must earn everything that I get.

5. that I will attend a minimum of 90% of the FSCT programming

6. that I will be on time at least 95% of the time to work or FSCT programming

7. that on the rare days that I can not attend or can not arrive on time, I will call my designated supervisor.

8. that I will work as hard as I can and do my best at every given task.

9. that I will be honest and law abiding in every situation.

10. that I will strengthen my body, mind and spirit to it’s greatest potential.

11. that I have the ability to accomplish anything that I set my mind to.

12. that I will do my best to help others better their lives.

13. that I will never give up hope.

Recidivism? Is there a way to prevent it?

According to statistics, as many as 70% of men who get out of prison, will be arrested again.

For whatever reasons, our prisons are not doing a good job in preparing offenders to reenter society and lead a crime free life.

The reasons for our poor success rate are many:

1. Job skills - In order for someone to lead a crime free life, he or she needs to have the proper skills to get a job.

2. Income - Having job skills is only one step in the process.  Many employers are reluctant to hire an former offender even if they have the skills required to perform at the job.

3. Budgeting and Financial Education - We all know of stories of athletes and entertainers that spend all of their money and are now broke, because nobody ever taught them the basic skills of budgeting, savings and investment.  If this is true for someone who makes millions, it's even harder for someone who makes minimum wage.

4. Environment - Many people getting out of jail return to the very same neighborhoods where they got in trouble in the first place.  They're surrounded my the same old problems and negative influences.

5. Self worth and hope - People tend to make bad choices when they don't believe that it's possible to obtain or they deserve a better life.

The statistics are what they are for a reason and the challenges are enormous, but I believe with a combination of education, inspiration and a philosophy of personal responsibility, we can make a difference and change the statistics... even if it's just for one person at a time.