The Power of People Re-Planting Program was created after Brother Shane was asked by Ruth Stadheim, then Education Director at Faribault Correctional Facility in Faribault, Minnesota to do a workshop for African American offenders looking for new tools and strategies that would empower them to create positive changes in their lives while reducing recidivism. This workshop was the beginning of The Power of People Re-Entry Initiative which now consists of an extensive pre-release and post-release educational and leadership process based on the core content from Dr. Verna Price's bestselling books, The Power of People: Four Kinds of People Who Can Change Your Life and The Silent Cry: Dealing with Subtracters in Work and Life.
YouTube Link for P.O.P Group Videos
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZG8xacZmYmL3BuobkKhnCQ/videos
We go after the definition of Person-Hood. Person Hood is that individual that you have been created to be, full of potential, but perhaps untapped. Our training goes after your understanding of person hood and defines the responsibilities that go along with it.
P.O.P. Leadership Training is designed to uncover the leadership qualities that you possess and helps you develop them toward living a ‘good life’.
P.O.P. has been using the group mentoring process effectively for the last 15 years. Group mentoring incorporates the circle process. In the circle everyone has a chance to listen which is most important, and everyone has a chance to speak. Our group mentoring work takes place weekly. One on one mentoring also occurs on a daily basis.
P.O.P. staff uses a navigation system to assist its participants in locating live-able wage employment by developing employer partnerships that work for both, while maintaining a high-level expectation of our employee pool.
In 2019 P.O.P. housed 22 individuals in its 2 residential buildings. Some former residence have left our transitional housing, and purchased their own homes.
Mental health issues are real in our service population and P.O.P. is committed to addressing them by developing professional relationships with mental health providers.
Education is key to a successful and better future. We expect our guys to further their education. A number of our men are enrolled in college or have graduated with Associates, Bachelors, or Masters degrees. We provide scholarship funds to aid them in that process in conjunction with community and corporate donations.
Brother Shane Price
8 Steps to the Good Life - Men's Breakfast
Over the years, The Power of People Re-Entry Initiative has impacted a multi-cultural and diverse group of over 5000 offenders across four correctional facilities in Minnesota (Faribault, Lino Lakes, Moose Lake, Rush City). In 2010, The Power of People Re-Entry Initiative launched its first P.O.P. Re-Entry housing facility designed specifically to house program graduates reentering their community. In 2012, The Power of People Re-Entry Initiative was launched to an international audience in Curacao, Netherlands, Antilles.
MPR NEWS - Change Makers Article
Reporting on our statistical numbers. For this stat, the term POP GUYS will refer only to those pop guys who have completed the P.O.P. Personal Development Class inside one of the MN Institutions.
- 89 P.O.P. Guys Served in 2019
- 108 Total Men Served in 2019
- Guests including women were numerous (approx. 49 of 51 men, 55 of 84 women, total 104 guest approx)
- 1 New Case
- 4 Tech Violations
- 5 people went back x $43k p/person p/year = 215,000 costing
- 81 people did not go back saving x 43k p/person p/yr = 3,483,000 saving tax payers
- 95% free
- 5% went back to prison
- 65 of the 86 people working = 76% working
- 21 we have helped obtain employment (33%)
- 5 people on SSI
- Least pay $11
- Top pay $55
- Paying into tax system $2,553,600 approx at $19 p/hr * 70 people