MONROE — Terrence Connor believes that people don’t have to live in conflict.
The Bothell man, 60, is a longtime volunteer in dispute resolution and court mediation in Snohomish and King counties. For nearly a decade, he’s been helping with Susi Bryant’s class for prisoners at the Monroe Correctional Complex.
The prison class is a program of the Volunteers of America Dispute Resolution Center in Everett, which serves Snohomish, Island and Skagit counties.
Connor worked in the business world for decades. He has found that many volunteer groups, including faith-based organizations, donate their time behind bars, he said.
Bryant, 55, of Lake Forest Park, receives some pay to organize the classes, but teaches at the prison on her own time, she said. She has a master’s degree in sociology. As a graduate student, she assisted with teaching classes in criminology. She learned in school that education is a powerful factor in whether inmates commit new crimes after their release.
“I always had that in the back of my mind,” she said.
Inmates who take the classes learn about skills to prevent conflict and also how to deal with conflict when it arises, she said. They practice having tough conversations, such as job interviews or discussing problems with landlords or romantic partners.
The class emphasizes listening, empathy, compassion and self-control, she said.
“It can make a quick and noticeable difference in their interactions,” she said. “Those are priceless moments for me, when somebody comes back to class and they said they spoke to someone on the phone or they had a situation they dealt with, and they did it very differently and it worked for them.”
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @rikkiking.
Learn more
The Volunteers of America Dispute Resolution Center in Everett serves Snohomish, Island and Skagit counties and also runs a program at the Monroe Correctional Complex. For more information about the prison program, which accepts donations, contact daustin@voaww.org, 425 212-3931. Donations are used to cover program costs including supplies and books.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
