Join us in our 24th year of helping incarcerated women make better decisions!
Better Decisions is a volunteer-driven organization that attracts women who seek a personal and meaningful volunteer experience. By providing a unique opportunity to work 1-on-1 with an incarcerated woman, Better Decisions brings together women of all ages and backgrounds both inside and outside the prison walls.
A comprehensive 10-hour training weekend, a structured curriculum, and check-ins with experienced volunteers provide beginners with everything they need to be effective mentors during the 8-week program.
We welcome you and hope that you will explore our website and learn more about this rewarding program.
Program
This volunteer-driven program teaches decision-making and problem-solving skills to women incarcerated in Nashville, TN. Since 1985, more than 800 women of all ages and walks of life have been trained to work with inmates at the Tennessee Prison for Women. Over 1200 inmates have successfully completed the 8-week program, which is offered twice a year, in the fall and early spring.
The 8-week structured course includes:
- weekly classes using a nationally-recognized curriculum
- weekly mentoring sessions where each (inmate) student practices skill building with a trained volunteer partner
The annual training weekend for new volunteers is held in mid-September. Once trained, the volunteer mentor meets with her inmate partner one hour per week in the afternoon or evening. A detailed manual guides the volunteer and experienced volunteers provide support to newcomers.
Mission
Incarcerated women often come from backgrounds with little opportunity to learn how to make positive decisions. Instead they tend to:
- react impulsively.
- flee difficult situations by using alcohol or other drugs.
- float along, letting others decide for them.
Institutionalization further erodes self-esteem and personal responsibility.
The purpose of Better Decisions is to offer each (inmate) student tools to:
- learn to identify her feelings.
- monitor her responses to different situations.
- set goals.
- practice changing self-image from "born to lose" to "born to choose".
- gain more control over her life.
Statistics
Nationwide:
- More than 70% of all women in state prisons are serving sentences for nonviolent offenses. Women account for approximately 14% of violent offenders nationwide. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Report on Women Offenders 1999).
- 67% of women in state prison have at least one family member who has been incarcerated. (U.S. Department of Justice 1997 survey).
- About 65% of women in state prisons have young children, and an estimated 1.3 million minor children have mothers under supervision by the U.S. criminal justice system. (BJS Report on Women Offenders 1999).
- 57% of female inmates report having been physically or sexually abused in the past. (BJS Report on Women Offenders 1999).
- Incarcerated women are twice as likely as women in the general population to have grown up in a single-parent household. (BJS Report on Women Offenders 1999).
In Tennessee:
- The Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC) supervises about 20,000 inmates who occupy 16 state prisons. The state pays over $1 million per day to house inmates. (TDOC 2006 Annual Report).
- About 1,140 women are incarcerated in two facilities: about 740 at the Tennessee Prison for Women in Nashville (TPW), and 400 at the Mark Luttrell Reception Center in Memphis. (TDOC website).
- TPW demographics: Average age is 36, and the racial breakdown is 68% white, 30% black, 2% other. (TDOC 2006 Annual Report).
Feedback
From Better Decisions graduates:
| "You never made me feel like a loser, but a winner …" "My partner really helped me to stay focused and dig deep within myself, something nobody has ever taken the time to do in my lifetime …" " I needed to learn how to make constructive decisions or I believe I was gonna die.” |
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"The Better Decisions program is a tool to empower women to not be 'stuck' by choices made earlier in life. It reinforces the idea of choosing today to be a woman of power for good." |
-Vicki Leverette,
Better Decisions graduate in 1994;
released from prison in 1997.
From Better Decisions volunteers:
| “I hope that you will continue to provide me with this experience that I find more rewarding each time I do it …" "I’ve learned as much, if not more, than I’ve taught these women …" "It was a gratifying and eye-opening experience in every way.” |
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"Volunteering with Better Decisions grounds me by changing my focus from myself to others. Being surrounded by the dedication, inspiration, and courage of other women frees me to become a better person." |
-Annie Goodhue,
Better Decisions volunteer since 1992
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"I never expected to find so much freedom of expression inside prison walls. My students' courage to be truthful about themselves inspired and strengthened me. I gained more then I gave." |
-Amy Steele,
Vanderbilt Divinity School graduate 2000,
Better Decisions teacher 1998-1999
Contributions
Better Decisions gratefully acknowledges past and/or ongoing support from:
- Volunteers and individual donors
- Brentwood United Methodist Church
- Second Presbyterian Church
- State of Tennessee
- The Memorial Foundation
- The Temple
- Vanderbilt United Way Giving Campaign
- Vine Street Christian Church
- Westminster Presbyterian Church
- Woodmont Christian Church
Tax-deductible contributions of any size are welcome from individuals, businesses and organizations.
For more information about Better Decisions, to find out about volunteer opportunities and/or to make a contribution, contact:
