COLLEGE Behind Bars.

This is the best rehabilitation project so for persons who are in conflict with the law and presently detained. The project is set for implementation inside the Davao City Jail in Maa. The school will start classes on August 11, 2017.  One thing unique about this project is that it is an initiative of a non-government organization (NGO) in coordination with the University of Southeastern Philippines (UseP). The NGO behind this very noble project is the Social Entrepreneurship Institute SEI) whose president is Dr. Aland Mizell, a columnist of this paper. His vice president is lawyer Susan Cariaga, who is no stranger in the education discipline. Atty. Cariaga is President of Thompson Christian School. She also used to be an executive of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII). The building that will house the classes are already in place and the classrooms are furnished by the SEI.  According to Dr. Mizell and lawyer Cariaga there are 70 inmates out of 300 who applied to enroll who qualified after the conduct of an entrance examination. They will be taking Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and BS in Agribusiness degrees.After some serious evaluation of the future performance of the inmate students the College Behind Bars will be introducing additional diploma courses. What interests us on this rehabilitative venture is the plan to include a discipline on anger management. We believe this one is very appropriate and will definitely “hit the nail on the head.”

For this laudable endeavor we congratulate Dr. Mizell, Attorney Cariaga, UseP President Dr. Lourdes Generalao, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology Director Serafin Petronio Barreto Jr., and the Maa Jail Management team of Warden Supt. Grace Taculin And Asst. Warden Sr. Insp. Roberto Gotico.

We are hoping that the vision of the SEI to have this College Behind Bars project be replicated all over the country.

It is this kind of project that will really attain the best kind of rehabiilitation to those people who want to go back to the right track in life.

To Dr. Mizell it’s nice to have you in Davao. You are indeed a blessing to the Davaoenos, specifically to the inmates now languishing their time in jail while waiting for the disposition of their cases by the courts.