Roots of Success

Ohio Inmates Observe Earth Day, Reflect on Impact of Sustainability Initiatives

Shamar — Fri, 03 May 2013 00:40:57 +0000

Since the first Earth Day in 1970, people from all walks of life have used the holiday as an opportunity to come together and pay special attention to their local environments. While communities around the world participate in activities to help protect the natural environment and promote environmental justice, for the millions of people in America’s prisons, jails and juvenile justice facilities, opportunities for this kind of engagement are much harder to come by. This is why Roots of Success is partnering with correctional institutions and criminal justice organizations across the country to provide offenders with opportunities to connect with nature and reduce their environmental impact.

Roots of Success has been working with the Vera Institute of Justice and the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections since 2011 to bring our curriculum to correctional facilities across Ohio, in support of their strategic sustainability plan. To date, long-term offenders in 11 facilities have been certified to teach the curriculum, including two who have obtained Master Trainer certification and will continue to certify instructors throughout the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections system. These instructors have gone on to graduate more than 600 students from Roots of Success, with many more classes on the way.

The impact that Roots of Success has on Ohio facilities is visible and growing. Some facilities are now providing inmates with opportunities to work to reduce the size of their facilities’ environmental footprint — including Marion Correctional Institution, where the ‘Green Initiative’ inmate group employs more than 100 incarcerated men in green jobs throughout the facility. Inmates involved in Roots of Success at Marion also organized an Earth Day celebration last week to educate other inmates about “going green.”

A recent article in the The Columbus Dispatch highlights a pilot project at the Ohio Reformatory for Women that aims to reduce recidivism among female inmates by preparing them for emerging careers in the green economy. In addition to Roots of Success, inmates complete classes on financial literacy, problem solving for reentry, employability skills, renewable energy technologies and weatherization. To apply what they are learning, the women are now making energy efficiency improvements to buildings within the prison and carefully calculating the impact their efforts — in cost savings and reduced carbon emissions. “This is opening a door” explains Caprice (pictured above), one of the programs’ leaders and a certified Roots of Success instructor, ”I could be somebody’s boss someday. Or own my own company.”

Interested in the Prisons, Jails & Juvenile Justice Facilities version of Roots of Success? Contact info@rootsofsuccess.org for more information about brining Roots of Success to your program, or to request access to a curriculum sampler.

WA Inmate Reflects on Experience Teaching Roots of Success for First Time

Shamar — Thu, 02 May 2013 00:11:41 +0000

In the article linked below Michael, a Washington State Penitentiary inmate, reflects on his experience as a newly trained Roots of Success Instructor:

http://sustainabilityinprisons.org/blog/2013/05/01/root-view-my-experience-as-a-new-roots-of-success-instructor/

Roots of Success ”lights a path toward hope” Michael explains “it paints a picture of a conflict that, for once, is not only winnable, but will have no losers at all.”

21 inmates and staff from Department of Corrections facilities across Washington state — including Cedar Creek Corrections Center, Stafford Creek Corrections Center, Correctional Industries, and Washington State Penitentiary — were trained and certified to teach the Prisons, Jails & Juvenile Justice Facilities version of Roots of Success during an April training in Tumwater, WA. After being trained as instructors in the curriculum, inmates teach classes of their peers about a variety of environmental topics. Contact info@rootsofsuccess.org for more information about brining Roots of Success to your program, or to request access to a curriculum sampler.

Mission High School Students to Earn College Credits for Taking Roots of Success

Shamar — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 00:22:12 +0000

Earlier this week, eight teachers from Mission High School were certified to teach Roots of Success during a training near their campus in San Francisco, CA. The newly trained instructors will begin offering Roots of Success to students at Mission High later this month, and we are thrilled to announce that we have succeeded in creating a university-credit-bearing course for those participating in the class.

Through a collaboration between Roots of Success, Mission High School, and San Francisco State University, students at Mission High who successfully complete the class will have the opportunity to gain 3 college credits. The decision to award college credits was made after a comprehensive course articulation process, which looked at how students gain knowledge about critical environmental and social issues, problems and solutions, increase core academic proficiencies, and develop job readiness and professional skills through the Roots of Success course. The version of the curriculum that Mission High School will use features examples of young people having a positive impact on their campuses and communities, as well as exercises that challenge youth to apply what they are learning in the classroom to real world challenges and social enterprise opportunities.

The course that students will get credit for on their transcript is called “Critical Thinking and Decision Making,” and is being offered as part of San Francisco State University’s College of Education Step to College (STC) Program. Students in the STC program are high school seniors who take courses that prepare them in critical thinking, academic literacy, technology, and college readiness in an effort to familiarize historically under-represented urban students with the format and structure of university courses. Students who participate in the program also receive help filling out university applications for admissions and financial aid, and when possible, scholarship support.

We are incredibly excited to be able to offer a credit bearing course to students at Mission High School, and would like to extend a very thank you to the Step to College Program’s coordinator Eurania I. Lopez, Ed.D. for helping to make this possible!

Roots of Success Executive Director Presents Workshop at CWA’s Annual Youth Employment Conference

Shamar — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 23:33:09 +0000

Roots of Success Founder and Executive Director Dr. Raquel Pinderhughes returned today from a three-day trip to Southern California, where she attended the California Workforce Association’s annual Youth Conference and led a workshop on “The Missing Link in Connecting Youth with Green Jobs”. The conference, which wrapped up Thursday afternoon with a rousing address by Larry Robbin on the profound impact of workforce development programs, showcased Roots of Success alongside a wide variety of programs and strategies that are making a difference in the lives of youth and young adults who have become disconnected from school or work.

During her presentation, Dr. Pinderhughes highlighted how the comprehensive materials and unique teaching approach of Roots of Success are strengthened by the partnerships our organization has built with programs across the country. ”We work with programs that have done the hard work of getting young people in the door and motivating them to stay,” Dr. Pinderhughes explained, ”our job is to provide these programs with the training, materials, and wrap around services that will enable them to do their work better.” The informative and engaging workshop brought together representatives from a diverse range of programs serving young people, and ended with an open discussion of how proven tools like Roots of Success can be used to help create a better future for at-risk youth and their communities.

Dr. Pinderhughes also screened a new video featuring Jamie Brewster, Site Manager and Roots of Success instructor for Asian Neighborhood Design’s Employment Training Center, talking about how the curriculum helps his program prepare young adults with barriers to employment for careers in the green economy. The video, which you can watch below, gave attendees a first-hand account of how a workforce training organization like Asian Neighborhood Design can use the curriculum to ensure that their graduates have the knowledge, skills, and confidence to, in the words of Jamie, become “ambassadors of green” in the construction field — and to also share that information with friends, family, and other people in their community.

The Roots of Success team would like to extend a special thank you to all those who engaged with us at the workshop, and we encourage those in attendance to follow-up with us and continue the discussion of how Roots of Success can help prepare students for a successful future. With the start of the new year arrive new prospects for growth, and our team is consistently working to engage with communities who might benefit from our work — you can always call (510) 470-0803 or email info@rootsofsuccess.org if you are interested in having us presents a talk or workshop at your upcoming conference.

South Africa Partner Green Talent Commits to ’110% Green’ Flagship Project

Shamar — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 19:00:11 +0000

Roots of Success’s partner in South Africa, Green Talent, has signed on as a Flagship Project to ‘110% Green‘ — an initiative of the Western Cape Government that is bringing together a total of 61 projects to mobilize citizens of the province to “commit and act in practical ways that have a positive impact on the province’s environmental and economic growth.”Green Talent will be supporting their objective of making Western Cape the Green Economic Hub of Africa by supporting residents of the province who wish to obtain educational and skills training in the green economy, career guidance, and information on green job opportunities.Through their partnership with Roots of Success, Green Talent will offer trainings focused on increasing environmental literacy and job readiness among groups that most need green jobs, including: at risk youth, adult learners, and aspiring social entrepreneurs. In a meeting with Western Cape Premier Helen Zille and other 110% Green officials, Green Talent committed to putting 30 groups of 20 students through the Roots of Success course by the end of 2013; preparing as many as 600 Western Cape residents with barriers to employment for green collar work.

Roots of Success is very excited to be working with Green Talent to localize the Roots of Success curriculum and make it available to programs operating in South Africa. Roots of Success recognizes Green Talent’s expertise in offering sustainability career guidance to job seekers in South Africa, and we look forward to developing a version of Roots of Success for South Africa that can enhance their ability to prepares clients for opportunities in the green economy, and to improve conditions in their communities, through relevant environmental literacy, academic literacy, and job readiness training. If you are in South Africa and interested in brining Roots of Success to your program you can email us at info@rootsofsuccess.org, or give us a call at +00 1 510 4700803, for more information and to get in contact with our team in South Africa.

To learn more about 110% Green, an evolving network of organizations committed to “implementing projects that connect the dots between green and the economy,” and see their other projects in action, visit http://www.facebook.com/110green.

Roots of Success Introduced to Inmates at London’s Wormwood Scrubs Prison

Shamar — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 19:00:17 +0000

Last week, staff from the Otesha Project UK began teaching Roots of Success to Inmates at London’s Wormwood Scrubs Prison. Tamsin Robertson and Hanna Thomas, Otesha’s Roots of Success instructors, spent the day in Wormwood Scrubs piloting the Fundamentals module with an enthusiastic group of inmates involved in the prison education program. Otesha received fantastic feedback from those who participated in the class, as well as from the prison education staff who observed. “The delivery was excellent, aimed at exactly the right level,” one prison education teacher observed, “all of [the men] were fully engaged, regardless of age or ability.” Students appreciated learning about “options for the future in the green economy” and getting help to “find work that’s considered ‘green’.” Both instructors really enjoyed the opportunity to offer fundamental environmental literacy training to people who may not have otherwise had an opportunity to engage with the material, and are looking forward to delivering more Roots of Success classes within England’s prisons!

Otesha Project UK is a youth-led organization that mobilizes young people to create social and environmental change at the local level, they also anchor the East London Green Jobs Alliance. They are incorporating the Roots of Success curriculum into their work with colleges, trade unions, local government, businesses, NGOs, and correctional facilities to create more opportunities for unemployed young people to enter green jobs.

Roots of Success for the UK is an empowering and comprehensive environmental literacy and job readiness curriculum that has been customized for use in the UK. The curriculum has been extensively revised for use with diverse populations living in the UK. If you are in the UK and interested in brining Roots of Success to your program, give us a call at +00 1 510 4700803 for more information (please be aware that England is 8 hours ahead of California.)

grist.org Recognizes Roots of Success Instructor Markese Bryant: People ‘Changing the World’

Shamar — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 21:47:48 +0000

Roots of Success Instructor Markese Bryant was recently profiled as part of grist.org’s ongoing series on People ‘Changing the World.’ Bryant, an Oakland, Calif. native who was thrust “from the mean streets to the green economy” after an arrest convinced him to turn his life around, has emerged in recent years as a tireless advocate for the next generation of African American environmental leaders. “The students I was reaching are going to be leaders in the African American community,” Bryant explains in the article, “I knew if we could mesh their energy with the environmental movement, we could popularize the idea of sustainability.”

Bryant worked for several years with early Roots of Success supporter Green for All, an Oakland-based organization working to simultaneously build the green economy and lift local citizens out of poverty, before being awarded a “black male achievement” fellowship at Echoing Green and launching Fight for Light, Inc. – an initiative working to transform communities by empowering local Black college students to be environmental leaders. Working primarily within HBCUs, Fight for Light will provide access to education in sustainable energy, urban agriculture, and environmental justice — with Roots of Success playing a key role in exposing participants to green concepts and opportunities.

Green Career Center Celebrates its 30th Roots of Success Graduation

Shamar — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 19:29:33 +0000

Earlier this year The Osborne Association celebrated the 30th Roots of Success graduation at their Green Career Center! The Bronx, NY based Green Career Center prepares individuals with current or previous involvement in the criminal justice system to enter and advance in the green economy by providing them with comprehensive environmental literacy and career development training. The Green Career Center incorporates the Fundamentals, Energy, Building, and Food, Health, and Agriculture modules of Roots of Success into their career-training program. The curriculum is a key component of the Green Career Center, allowing them to simultaneously accomplish the three critical goals of their program: increasing academic literacy; developing professional skills; and promoting environmental literacy.

Angel Gavilanes, Workforce Development and Roots of Success Instructor at the Green Career Center, recognizes that the curriculum “offers a different angle from our regular training and therefore expands the tools provided by The Green Career Center. Roots of Success has assisted us in empowering our participants. We are very grateful and enjoy using the Roots of Success environmental literacy curriculum!”

One of their participants’ favorite aspects of the Roots of Success class was the multimedia content; they particularly enjoyed the videos that discussed issues related to the green economy or sustainability in an entertaining, engaging, and inspiring way. Participants also appreciated learning about different types of green careers; as well as the vocabulary used by people in the green economy, which they understand is essential to obtaining employment in the green sector. Exposing participants to the ways that environmental issues like climate change, environmental injustice, and the lack of resources impact people around country and around the world also helped them better understand the issues they experience in their local environment.

To learn more about The Osborne Association Green Career Center’s five-week environmental literacy training and career development program, please visit their website or contact Kelly Watts at 718.707.2660 or kwatts@osborneny.org.

Roots of Success Users Profiled by the National Wildlife Federation’s Campus Ecology Program

Shamar — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 00:06:40 +0000

A case study describing how the Arturo Velasquez Institute, Chicago Botanic Garden, Windy City Harvest, and Cook County Sheriff’s Boot Camp are using Roots of Success to prepare youth and adults with barriers to employment for jobs in the green economy was recently added to the National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology Program’s database of over 800 case studies — which highlight how educational programs and institutions across the U.S. and Canada are improving their environmental educational programming and increasing sustainability.

Windy City Harvest is a social enterprise that, in partnership with Richard J. Daley College/Arturo Velasquez Institute, provides a nine-month certificate training program and internship in sustainable horticulture and urban agriculture. They also operate a production and training garden at the Cook County Sheriff’s Boot Camp, an alternative sentencing facility for young men. Windy City Harvest averages between 15-20 participants per year, and in 4 years has graduated a total of 55 individuals.

According to the case study, Roots of Success is the main educational tool these programs rely on to prepare their participants with the skills in environmental science, writing, mathematics, reading comprehension, written communications, critical thinking, and problem solving that employers require. According to Kelly Larsen, who submitted the case study to the National Wildlife Federation’s Campus Ecology Program, “it is critical that training programs have effective and engaging educational components like Roots of Success so that that can empower participants of all backgrounds to enter careers in the green economy.” You can read the full case study at the Campus Ecology Program’s website and visit the Windy City Harvest website for information about a variety of programs offered to Chicago residents.

Workforce Training for Good Green Jobs in New York

Shamar — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 19:41:40 +0000

A recent post in the New York Times Energy and Environment Green Blog is praising New York City’s growing green economy as an important source of jobs for undeserved communities like the South Bronx, which suffer from high unemployment, underinvestment, and environmental injustice.

The blog contribution by former deputy director of the New York Industrial Retention Network Sarah Crean highlights the work of a number of programs in New York using Roots of Success — including The Consortium for Worker Education, The Osborne Association, Sustainable South Bronx and Non-Traditional Employment for Women. The South Bronx-based training center that these programs developed offers training in “hard” and “soft” skills — from basic plumbing to upgrading electrical systems for energy efficiency — along with courses on environmental literacy and seeking and holding a job. The article praises these programs for working to close the skill gaps among those at lower socioeconomic levels, with the help of resources like Roots of Success, and for developing pathways to the green economy for some of New York’s most difficult to employ residents.

Crean also acknowledges the positive behavior changes spurred by participation in the environmental workforce training programs. According to the blog, twice as many studetns reported shopping at farmers’ markets after finished the coursework. Students also reported conserving energy, reducing their water use, and thinking about how they disposed of consumer goods like appliances and clothing. Sean Brailsford, who enrolled in a program through the Osborne Association after passed through the criminal justice system, said the program helped him “realize how much energy I am wasting on little things like cellphone chargers plugged into your wall” and taught him “how to conserve and be less wasteful.”

In just two and a half years Center for Environmental Workforce Training has graduated over 400 participants, over half of whom have gone on to find jobs — mostly with companies doing efficiency upgrades, building maintenance, construction, repairs, sustainable manufacturing, and landscaping. For more information about the CWE Green Industry Development program visit http://www.cwe.org/green_industry_development.php