News Release - April 24, 2009
Georgia Department of Corrections
Brian Owens, Commissioner
Director of Public Affairs
Joan Heath
Contact: Office of Public Affairs (404) 656-9772
For Immediate Release
Scott State Prison Hosts Open House for Braille Program
Atlanta - Scott State Prison will be hosting an open house for their Georgia Braille Transcribers program that is provided to inmate offenders. The event will take place Wednesday, April 29, 2009 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the prison’s Ingram building.
At the open house, a brief history of the program will be given and stations will be set up to show demonstrations on how Braille books are produced. The inmates will give these demonstrations to show what they have learned from the program.
There are currently 29 men from Scott State Prison and Men’s State Prison that participate in the Braille program as a student, trainee, apprentice, or program aide. Individuals selected for participation in the Braille Program complete vocational education units under the guidance of Middle Georgia Technical College (MGTC). Upon completion of 960 contact hours and course objectives, participants receive a certificate of achievement from MGTC.
From July 2008 through March 2009, the inmates transcribed and delivered 1,110 Braille volumes to Georgia students through the Georgia Instructional Materials Center (GIMC). The estimated value of these volumes was $205,301. The actual cost to Georgia taxpayers was $12,905, resulting in an estimated cost savings of $192,396.
(Directions from Atlanta: I-20 East to Highway 441 South to Milledgeville. Through downtown Milledgeville on Highway 441 for one mile, turn left on Vinson Highway (GA 112). About one mile, turn right onto Laboratory Road then turn left onto Bostick Road. Turn right onto Lawrence Road. Scott State Prison is ½ mile on the left).
The Department of Corrections is the fifth largest prison system in the United States and is responsible for supervising nearly 60,000 state prisoners and over 150,000 probationers. It is the largest law enforcement agency in the state with approximately 15,000 employees.
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