Published: August 22, 2009 10:04 pm      

Jailed offenders transcribing textbooks

Director says Miami Correctional Facility Braille project is growing

BUNKER HILL — Offenders at the Miami Correctional Facility are giving something back to the community by helping out the blind and in turn helping themselves.

Offenders have already transcribed 15,000 Braille pages of textbooks and are currently working on transcribing 3,500 graphic pages as part of the Miami Braille Project, which began at Miami Correctional Facility last year.

“It’s growing by leaps and bounds,” Robert Eutz, project program director, said of the program.

The project teaches offenders how to transcribe school textbooks into low-cost quality Braille textbooks, which will be used by Indiana’s school-age children in grades K-12. The books are provided in a timely and efficient manner while teaching a valuable skill to the participants of the correctional facility that will increase post-release employment.

Braille transcription services cost schools thousands of dollars for one textbook. The project, which is a collaborative effort between the Indiana Department of Correction, Industries Division PEN Products, the Indiana Department of Education, Center for Exceptional Learners and the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, officially began in May 2008 with 20 men.

PEN Products is a division of the Indiana Department of Correction. PEN’s mission is to employ offenders within Indiana’s correctional facilities by providing meaningful jobs, instilling a work ethic and providing marketable skills.

Initially, Eutz expected it would take six months to a year for the offenders to earn their certificates, but they have done that and more. The program now has 24 men with 19 holding certifications as Literary Braille Transcribers. Four others are waiting on their grades for their certification and one is a visually-impaired offender, learning to read Braille to enhance his computer skills.

“The goal with the visually impaired student is to get him efficient enough to be certified as a proofreader and possibly get a job with the IRS,” said Eutz.

Even with their certifications, the learning continues, he said.

The offenders who have earned their certificates are now studying Textbook Formats Course offered by the National Braille Association. The offenders are constantly working under a deadline, which has intensified now that school has begun.

“We are a year ahead of time,” Eutz said of the program. “We are working the kinks out of the program now, and we thought it would be three years before we would see much of a benefit. We’re already showing progress and making a dent in the needs of visually impaired students.”

With the costs to produce Braille pages between 50 cents and $5, Eutz believes the program has already saved the state thousands of dollars this year alone with the work the offenders have completed.

“We were excited to get this unique program at Miami Correctional Facility and are proud it is making the lives of the state’s visually impaired children easier,” said Sally Stevenson, acting superintendent of the prison.

“It’s a win-win situation,” she said. “The program gives offenders a marketable skill, while providing a much needed service to the community and the state as a whole.”

Along with helping the blind, the project is turning offenders into tax-paying citizens upon their release.

“This program is right there on the forefront of change,” Eutz said of the possibilities. He believes there are growth and expansion possibilities and he sees nothing but positive for the program’s future.

• Mike Fletcher is the Kokomo Tribune crime reporter. He can be reached at (765) 454-8577 or mike.fletcher@kokomotribune.com.