Corrections_Today_November_December_2022_Vol.84_No.6

■ E DUCATION

Inspirational quotes and creative writing exercises pro vide resources and ideas for new ways of thinking. All of the tools implemented during Agitated to Elevated classes can be used independently at a low cost and be utilized on their own after their release. Three of the most important things I have learned from teaching Agitated to Elevated 1. The mind can be free even when the body is in prison. There are certain sensations everyone can relate to regardless of gender, age, and prior life experiences, such as deprivation of oxygen. It is from this place of familiar ity with my own inner world, that I find connection with those in prison. The constricting feeling that comes with physical imprisonment creates an underlying current that is ever present among I/Is. Mental prison is controlled by the self. Each individual holds their own key to unlock limiting beliefs. An invitation from me arises; to invite students to travel within themselves, becoming more fully present in each given moment. How can I help support their movement towards freeing their mind? “I am more free now, while I am here in prison than I was outside. Out there my body was free. But my mind was in prison. Now, I’m locked up but my mind is free.” — Malik, Ulster County Jail 2. Light is the only thing that dissipates darkness Prisons can feel like pressure cookers. Problems are ex acerbated but so is kindness. To see those who are stripped of physical freedom and living in such an undesirable setting, having inner transformations by using the tools provided in this class is nothing short of awe inspiring. 3. How the faculty or staff responds when things are not going as they planned is a living example of how the I/Is can learn to respond when faced with untoward events. Those “raised by the streets” seem to carefully per ceive the motives and energy of others. Some of their lives depended on being able to understand a person’s intent immediately. Malcom Gladwell discusses the ac curacy of intuitive snap judgements that rely on a “slice

of experience” and the unconscious mind. He cites Dr. Ekman’s Facial Action Coding System (FACS) who codi fied every one of the hundreds of muscles in the human face that comprises a facial expression. When a CO comes into a classroom, takes a student out only to return visibly irritated or upset, the facilita tor’s reaction is paramount to transforming an unpleasant event into a teachable moment. I usually allow space to air out what happened. They may need to talk about it right then. If not given the chance to do so, it is unlikely that they will integrate back into the flow of the class. If the instructor cannot absorb shock, the energetic flow of the class might break. There is a push and pull. The facilitator cannot lead attention from a place they are not connected to. It’s as if you’re walking along in the forest teaching your students about the trees and insects and then one child trips on a branch and falls into a ditch. The others will most likely stop. Some might try to help them up. If you keep walking ahead, seemingly not to no tice, you’re sending the message that you don’t care about one that falls. My suggestion is to stop. Take a breath. Lis ten and watch. If everyone is listening to that other student then the consensus is in. What they are speaking about at that moment IS more important than anything else. Don’t ignore it, don’t react. Listen and watch. When you feel that it is time to redirect the attention back to the task, I ask myself, “Am I moving from love or fear of the potential fall out of the class?” My motive will be felt by everyone. If it is fear based, I wait until I am more grounded and have a response that is motivated by love. Direct attention to those who are engaged in the class and the momentum and general direction will come back towards where you’re hoping to go. REFERENCES Cameron, Julia. The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. , 2002. Frankl, Viktor E. Man’s Search for Meaning: An Introduction to Logotherapy. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1984. Van der Kolk, Bessel A. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. New York, New York: Penguin Books, 2015.

Leah Gooch currently offers Agitated to Elevated classes at Hudson Correctional Facility, Ulster Correctional Facility (DOCCS) and Brookwood and Goshen Secure Center (OCFS).

30 — November/December 2022 Corrections Today