Foundations

If you were to ask a correctional trainer “How do you eat an elephant?” chances are you’ll get the answer “One bite at a time.”

E-training does not have to rigidly exist as an entire week of staff perched in front of computers.  Quite simply, that pachyderm-sized chunk of time can be broken down into smaller, more manageable units.  And the training can be done with a versatility hitherto not seen.

I have no way of knowing if this conversation ever took place.  But, let’s turn the clock back 40,000 years.  Imagine that two pre-bronze age trainers are discussing the pros and cons of hunting a large mammoth or mastodon.  Read more…

joebouchard Training

During periods of fiscal flaccidity, corrections always needs new ideas and better ways of operating.  This is the time when those with proposed innovations can shine.  Brainstorming session, now more than ever, are quite essential.

Did you ever get a flash of inspiration that surprised you and your colleagues?  This is a time when your brainchild cascaded from the tendrils of your mind like an unstoppable rush of water seeking the lowest point. The thought flowed wildly around you, almost enveloping you, as you remain solidly rooted.

It is rewarding when notions seemingly drop out of nowhere and bear fruit as a new and promote efficient ways of doing things. Read more…

joebouchard Self Scrutiny

We are engaged in an endless battle to keep the public, offenders, and ourselves safe.  No doubt, corrections is an important job.  However, it is no secret that the positive results of our labors are not always readily evident.

Then why do we do it?  Is the corrections profession worth it?   How do we anchor ourselves to our job?

 When asking such questions, we often feel forsaken in a wilderness of tasks looking for a meaning to our work.  Read more…

joebouchard Assessing the organization, Inside Out, Self Scrutiny

It seems that we ascend an endless set of steps in the pursuit of safety.  Contraband is a common menace in prisons.  It will exist as long as there is incarceration.  It is a never-ending proposition.

But an established contraband lord is not free of pressures to maintain an empire of illicit trade.  There are three threats to contraband empires, they are competing prisoners, corrupt staff, and professional staff. Understanding the structure and motives of these three groups will help foster safety for all in correctional facilities.

 Which would you choose as the lesser of two evils? Would you select the
 persistent and efficient criminal whose methods you know? Read more…

joebouchard Contraband Control

I have heard a few stories about my family’s past concerning the hazards of working in the anthracite coal mines of Eastern Pennsylvania. Clearly, miners faced many perils. Cave-ins, black lung, and poisonous gasses are just a few of these. Of course, these hazards are with the industry today.  And while mining is not quite what it was in Dickson City in the 19th century, I cannot help to wonder if they used canaries in the mines.  The image is evocative and iconic.

Just as in mining, past and present, not everyone would willingly work in corrections.  Read more…

joebouchard Security

Recently, I was invited to speak in Virginia on the topic of contraband control.  It was a fantastic experiene. I met fascinating jail professionals and enjoyed a location that was new to me.  And while I cannot fully share the actual tourist attractions or cuisine with you through the written word, I can offer you a part of the conference. 

At the conclusion of “Wake up and Smell the Contraband”, there were many who volunteered to offer answers for a survey.  Their answers follow: Read more…

joebouchard Contraband Control

It is clear that Pre-release mock job interviews offer direct benefits to inmate students and their teachers.  The former gains confidence from the successful completion of the interview itself.  The latter can attribute part of the students’ success to their abilities as instructors. 

But the indirect benefits are rarely examined.  Custody staff benefit from prisoners participating in vocational education in the same ways that programs enhance security.  A busy, productive prisoner body eases tensions in the facility.  And all prisoners are permitted to feel hope from the promise of another program that supports reintegration.  Read more…

joebouchard Training

Q. What has three legs but usually uses just two of them?

A. Most contraband control systems.

Consider the steady flow of contraband. It is seemingly as unstoppable as a widespread infestation. As corrections professionals, we can readily recognize that the dangers of the unofficial economy are very real.  Each of us, as an agent of stability, battle to level this playing field through the elimination of contraband.  By doing so, we work towards the ideal of achieving greater security for staff, offenders, and the public. Read more…

joebouchard Contraband Control

Isn’t it funny when you are engaged in an activity that you enjoy, you lose track of time? 

Mahjong and solitaire are examples of this.  And most of us can relate to telling a loved one that we will log off the computer soon – but that does not come until much later. 

For me, this mysterious warping of time is also true of writing.  Often, as my fingers fly across the keyboard, I find myself looking  at the clock for a second time.  What seemed to me like mere minutes passing was actually hours.  Time flies when you are having fun

In addition, the Foundations website is one year old on April 29th.  I see that as a nice time to take a literary break – a good, round number.  Please don’t construe this, Dear Reader, as a lazy Bouchard.  I am just going to recharge my batteries and enjoy some of the Spring. 

I hope that you have enjoyed reading my thoughts so far.  I have truly enjoyed writing and have gained insight from your comments.  Thanks for reading.  I will write back later.

joebouchard Dear Reader

At first glance, a colleague of mine seemed like a crusty corrections veteran with a predilection for enforcing the rules.  We often joke that in his spare time he goes to a local discount store and writes misconduct reports on shoppers who are not wearing regulation shoes.  We know (or suspect) that it is not really true.  That is the nature of camaraderie in corrections.

But, still water runs deep.  If one waits and listens patiently, nuances of others’ personality slowly appear. Above all, our profession teaches us that there are more than surface impressions to consider.

Although my rule enforcing colleague used his well-cultivated work persona to maintain a balanced, formidable exterior for an often precarious vocation, he surprised me from time to time.  He would let slip some corrections truisms from on occasion.  One of my favorites was, “Pay day and quitting time will get here on time”.  Like his work persona, on the face of it, it is what it is.  However there is more, if one delves a bit deeper. Read more…

joebouchard Self Scrutiny