Watters is the director for the Center of Entrepreneurship at the University of Dallas’ School of Business, and his program is helping to truly change the mind-set of prisoners — and the community.
“The [program] utilizes students at local colleges as mentors for newly released prisoners,” he explains. “[Students] are recruited throughout the state. [Prisoners] go through about 20 weeks of training where they are taught business skills, social skills, how to create a business.”
“They go through about 20 weeks of training where they are taught business skills, social skills, and how to create a business,” continues Watters. “They are released to a halfway house called Casablanca, [and] we have on campus what we call e-schools [entrepreneurship schools] [and] we conduct at that school a variety of two-hour sessions.”
Prisoners are taught leadership, personal branding, computer skills, networking skills and other skills to help with their transition.
“When they go through this program at the prison, they disconnect from gangs and racial barriers. They work as a team; helping each other. When they get out of prison they stay connected — helping each other find jobs, start[ing] businesses and work[ing] for each other. You don’t see an African American, a Hispanic and white guy sitting in different sections of the room. They all work together to graduate from the program.”
The program works. The recidivism rate for inmates participating in the Entrepreneurship program is less than 10 percent. In Texas, the general recidivism rate is 65 percent.
“The individual that participates has made a life-changing decision — ‘I’m not going to go through this again,’ ” says Watters. “They have made a faith-based decision. They are given the opportunity to come up with the things that can help them change their life — whether it’s education or learning how to handle relationships with other people. They reconnect with families and reconnect with society.”
–todd williams
