Terence K. Tubbs, J.D., is on a mission to help people beat the odds.
The Lawson State Community College adult education instructor was tapped to oversee the college's participation with IGNITE, which stands for Inmate Growth Naturally and Intentionally Through Education. The eight-week rehabilitation initiative between the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and Lawson State helps non-violent offenders prepare for successful reintegration into society.
"Our participation is all about equipping individuals for success beyond their current circumstance," Lawson State President Dr. Cynthia T. Anthony said at a recent IGNITE event. "We put the 'E' in IGNITE. We are the county's education partner for this program, and it is a privilege for us to be able to carry out our mission."
"We change lives at Lawson State," said Dr. Anthony. "We change their trajectory. We take people where they are, and we help them to get to where they want to go."
That is where instructors like Mr. Tubbs come in.
"I decided to become a part of the IGNITE program when Adult Education Director Charlette White brought the idea to my attention. Mrs. White expressed to me that there was a need for an adult education instructor at the jail. I instantly asked her to allow me to be a part of assisting our partners with the adult education portion needed for the IGNITE program," Mr. Tubbs said.
"Helping individuals obtain their adult basic education goals, whether it's prison or non-prison, is important to me," said Mr. Tubbs, who meets with the students at the county jail three times a week for three hours.
"Helping the IGNITE participants obtain their ACT WorkKeys certificates, their NorthStar Digital Literacy certificates, and their general education diploma through Lawson State is a tremendous accomplishment that I believe helps to improve the participants' way of life once they have been removed from incarceration and re-enter our communities," he said.
According to a July 2021 Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics report, people released at age 24 or younger were 64 percent more likely to be reincarcerated again within five years. The IGNITE program in Jefferson County, which is the 25th of its kind in the nation and part of a campaign promise made by Sheriff Mark Pettway to ensure the county jail is not a revolving door, is helping to lower the recidivism rate in Birmingham.
"The one most important thing I hope participants take from being a part of the program
is that their past and current conditions do not have to define their future dreams
and goals. Their setbacks must become their footstools to success, and when opportunities
come along that will benefit them as well as the others around them, they should take
it with a serious and intentional spirit."
--- Terence Tubbs, Adult Education IGNITE Instructor
"When we believe in people and equip them with opportunities, we ignite hope, transform lives, and build safer communities, one second chance at a time," Pettway said, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office website
Tubbs also has the same belief. "It is important to me to work with people who have been incarcerated because I have experienced the amazing opportunities that await a low-risk nonviolent offender if he takes advantage of a program like the IGNITE program," he said. "The instant gratification of adult education success is indescribable."
Mr. Tubbs continued: "The one most important thing I hope participants take from being
a part of the program is that their past and current conditions do not have to define
their future dreams and goals. Their setbacks must become their footstools to success,
and when opportunities come along that will benefit them as well as the others around
them, they should take it with a serious and intentional spirit."
-- Written by Chandra Sparks Splond
