STUDENT SUCCESS
Student Innovator: Anthony Albright
Published March 2016
Graduate student Anthony Albright is among the 13 NDSU students selected to participate in the Clinton Global Initiative University in Berkeley, California, in April.
The initiative challenges college students to address social issues with practical, innovative solutions. Each participant develops a new, specific and measurable plan to address the societal need they have identified. Only about 1,000 students around the country are invited to the conference.
Program: Doctoral, Rhetoric, Writing and Culture
Hometown: Doty, Washington
His project: Open Minds Open Doors is a mentorship program for non-violent ex-offenders that creates a bridge between incarceration and integration into the community. Mentors work with incarcerated inmates to develop relationships that aid ex-offenders when they leave state institutions. Mentors will specialize in connecting ex-offenders with housing and employment options, in order to immediately stabilize their lives, allowing the ex-offenders the optimal chance not to re-offend.
Effect on society: “Keeping just one ex-offender from becoming a re-offender will have done much good for society, but I envision Open Minds Open Doors creating a virtuous cycle in which former mentees eventually become mentors and the community benefits greatly from a lower overall crime rate, lower recidivism and a system of community acceptance that allows ex-offenders to reform.”
Next steps: “I aim to implement my plan, under the supervision of my mentor, Dr. Mara, and with the cooperation of appropriate state agencies. My hope is that I can start with a small cohort of mentor/mentees to prove the concept. I expect to begin recruiting mentors as soon as I return from the Clinton Global Initiative University.”
