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345 SE 5th, Madras, OR 97741 | 541.475.2275
Cody Yeager, left, director of Deer Ridge education for COCC, and inmate Jason George, 24, watch inmate tutor David Rystedt, 37, work the cutting table.
A new welding shop -- the only one of its kind in the state -- is providing inmates at Deer Ridge Correctional Institution with long-term, life-changing skills.
Under the direction of Central Oregon Community College, and welding director Tucker Bauman, the new shop has 10 students, three inmate tutors, and a tool clerk.
"It's given me more job skills so I can get a job," said inmate David Rystedt, 37, of Redmond, who signed on to set up the shop in July 2008 with Bauman, who is under contract with COCC.
The two worked together for over a year to build tables, put in the ventilation system, and lay out the approximately 5,400-square-foot shop.
Tucker Bauman, welding director for Deer Ridge, displays some of the projects completed by inmates.
Rystedt, who served 10 years for a murder committed when he was 18, and has served three years of a four-year sentence for violating his parole, will be released in February 2011.
"I think this is probably the best program they've ever offered in prison," he said. "All the guys in here now have a bright future -- including me. It's opened a lot of doors."
Welding classes started on Aug. 17, 2009.
An inmate tutor, Rystedt is teaching other inmates, including Jason George, 24, the finer points of working with metal.
"I knew a little bit on the streets, but I've learned most of it here," said George, who has plans of opening his own welding shop someday.
George has served four and one-half years for second-degree assault, and will be out of prison in 16 months.
"Through this program, I'm going to get my first year of associate of applied science. I'm going to try to transfer it to OIT (Oregon Institute of Technology) and finish my associate's," he said.
"The good thing, in a welding job you can start out earning enough to support yourself and your family," said Bauman.
Eligibility for the program depends on an inmate's age and the time remaining in his term, Bauman said, noting that the program is funded by a federal youth offender grant.
"They have to be under 35," he said. "They have to have at least nine months for the program, taking into consideration if they have to go into alcohol and drug treatment as well. Treatment programs take precedence."
Currently, inmates work in the shop from 8 to 10:30 a.m., and again from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Three days a week they attend math class to enhance their welding education.
Inmates receive a monetary award for participating in the program, based on a point system, which amounts to about $50 per month.
In the fall, new inmate participants will be able to earn college credit for the program. "The ones in now, in May will get certificates, but won't have college credits," said Bauman. The 31-credit course lasts nine months.
"There's definitely a high demand (for the program)," said Marissa Wilson, correctional counselor. "I get questions about it from a good 40 percent (of inmates counseled)."
According to Andrew Parker, of Salem, apprenticeship and work skills coordinator for the Oregon Department of Corrections, there are other welding shops at prisons around the state, but they have a different focus.
For example, inmates at the Oregon Correction Enterprises shop at the Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem build large metal equipment, such as sandhoppers for dump trucks used by the Oregon Department of Transportation, Parker said.
"They're an industries program," he said. "This is a training program. This is set up to take people with no skill and bring them up to a level where they can get a high-wage, high-demand job."
"If you send these guys out, and they're just making minimum wage, their chances of recidivating is increased," he explained. "But, if they can get a job where they can support themselves and their family, it dramatically reduces their chances of recidivism."
