Ursinus College's Involvement
"Graterford Literary Project:" an advertisement for the Ursinus Prison Literacy Program, here referred to as the Graterford Literacy Project, found in the September 12th, 1995, issue of The Grizzly, Ursinus College’s newspaper. Although the authors of this specific advertisement are not listed, one can assume it was created by someone associated with the program, like Dr. Eileen England, the psychology professor in charge of the program during its existence, or one of its student volunteers. The audience for this advertisement was, in general, the student body of Ursinus College as a whole since it appeared in the school-wide newspaper. When considering the details of the advertisement and the literacy project itself, the audience can be narrowed to students of any gender, race, class, or religion who were interested in obtaining a tutoring certification. By attending these three advertised training sessions in Bomberger 001, one would ostensibly become a literacy tutor and member of the program. Judging by the latter portions of the advertisement stating that “tutors are needed” and encouraging students to “become a literacy tutor today,” one can assume the Prison Literacy Program, at this time, was understaffed or at least in the market for a bit more help.
"Looking For A Few Good Dangerous Minds:" Joseph Catalfano reveals that he has revived the education club and addresses the student body in this advertisement for it. He implores those looking for even more education opportunities to join the club in order to engage with the way they are being taught, share their opinions on education and similar subjects, as well as attend events like movies and fieldtrips to fully explore what "education" means to those who are the subjects of the education. Some of the things he himself wishes to explore are the concept of military schools, juvenile halls, special educations facilites, and when it comes to Ursinus itself, the Graterford Literacy Project. He finishes by encouraging his audience to join the club, and notably, no record of him engaging with the literacy project surfaced during our research process, suggesting he may not have pursued the idea, or at the very least did not write about it
"Helping Inmates Read:" In the September 19, 1995, edition of The Grizzly, 1996 graduate Hope Rinehimer published the article “Helping Inmates Read.” The article details the operations of the Graterford Literacy Project and Ursinus’s active involvement in the project’s aim: increasing inmate literacy. The work also informs readers on what the literacy program entails and the experiences of Ursinus participants in the volunteer project. Moreover, and perhaps most significantly, “Helping Inmates Read” supports the education of the imprisoned and encourages interested students to participate by humanizing the imprisoned, specifically by noting the benefits prisoners gain from literacy tutoring (e.g., accessing job information or “[reading] a storybook to their child”) (The Grizzly 2). The article’s primary audience is Ursinus students and faculty. Ursinus College resides in the small, considerably liberal borough of Collegeville, PA. Yet, the College tends to accumulate students and staff from various parts of the country and even matriculates students and faculty from international grounds. Despite the diverse demographic, the College is a predominately white institution. Due to the prevalence of the specific identity of whiteness, one can generalize that such individuals have an adverse or ignorant view of the carceral system and the imprisoned simply due to their elevated position in American social hierarchies. In publishing an article like “Helping Inmates Read,” at an institution like Ursinus College, the author reaches a demographic that likely views the imprisoned as uncivilized barbarians rather than humans. Rinehimer’s “Helping Inmates Read” discusses the expansion of Ursinus’ tutoring program into the Graterford Prison, spearheaded by psychology professor Dr. Eileen England in 1993. The article then summarizes the role of prisoners within the literacy program and the fruitful interactions between the inmate and the tutor within both learning experiences.
"Seize The Day:" On October 6th1992, in The Grizzly, an article titled “Seize The Day” was published. The author of this article is Ellen R. Sylvester who is the Opinions Editor of The Grizzly, which is the student lead newspaper of Ursinus College. This article highlights the saying, “Carpe Diem”, and how Ellen applies that to her life. This article is intended for the general population student of Ursinus College; a small liberal arts school in rural Collegeville, PA. The Ursinus students all around Ellen are doing great acts of service and volunteering which leads her to want to sign up for Graterford’s Prison Literacy Program and “seize the day” as much as possible. This article highlights the humanity of Graterford’s prisoners and how their lives can positively change from education to better themselves overall; also, how there is many problems on campus like racial, and Greek life issues that need to be addressed by the community. This article being addressed to the Ursinus audience matters because these are the students that will get degrees and can change the world someday. These students can use their education for the better and to help the prison literacy program and increase awareness on the humanity of prisoners. When thinking about these large problems that go on in the world and the community, Ellen says, “… what can I do as just one person? When in reality, we should be thinking that there is so much that I as one person need to do.” This mindset that she shares with the Ursinus Students is important because she then ties that into helping the community of Norristown and eventually signing up to help at Graterford and the literacy program. The importance of individual action is an emphasis to her argument and included examples of a hurricane relief campaign and a Habitat for Humanity initiative. These contemplate the power of education and rehabilitation, drawing parallels between personal experiences and societal issues. The prison literacy program was a major project that was going on at this time in history. Ellen doesn’t directly say how she feels empathy towards the program, but she emphasizes the importance and self-reflection to take initiative