Episode 112 of the Same 24 Hours Podcast is with theRev. Jeff Grant (@revjeffgrant), a successful attorney who “lost it all” and gained a true calling and purpose. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ From addiction to prison to ministry, Jeff has a fascinating story – and I enjoyed my chat with him so much!⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ He, and his wife and partner-in-ministry Lynn Springer, co-founded Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc. (Greenwich, CT), the first ministry in the United States created to provide confidential support and pastoral care to individuals, families and organizations with white-collar and other nonviolent incarceration issues.⠀⠀
Listen on YouTube:
You can also listen in your browser at www.Same24HoursPodcast.com, or in your favorite podcast app (iTunes, Stitcher, Podbean, Spotify) by searching “The Same 24 Hours”⠀
Purchase Meredith Atwood’s new book, The Year of No Nonsense, here.
⠀ About The Year of No Nonsense: ⠀Exhausted and overworked lawyer, triathlete, wife, and mom Meredith Atwood decided one morning that she’d had it. She didn’t take her kids to school. She didn’t go to work. She didn’t go to the gym. When she pulled herself out of bed hours later than she should have, she found a note from her husband next to two empty bottles of wine and a stack of unpaid bills: You need to get your sh*t together.
And that’s what Meredith began to do, starting with identifying the nonsense in her life that was holding her back: saying “yes” too much, keeping frenemies around, and more. In The Year of No Nonsense, Atwood shares what she learned, tackling struggles with work, family, and body image, and also willpower and time management. Ultimately, she’s the tough-as-nails coach /slash/ best friend who shares a practical plan for identifying and getting rid of your own nonsense in order to move forward and live an authentic, healthy life. From recognizing lies you believe about yourself and your abilities, to making a “nonsense” list and developing a “no nonsense blueprint,” this book walks you through reclaiming yourself with grit and determination, step by step.
With targeted, practical chapters to help you stop feeling stuck and get on with your life, The Year of No Nonsense is equal parts girlfriend and been-there-done-that. The best part? Like any friend, she helps you get to the other side. ⠀
From Host Meredith Atwood: Episode 112 of the Same 24 Hours Podcast is with theRev. Jeff Grant (@revjeffgrant), a successful attorney who “lost it all” and gained a true calling and purpose. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ From addiction to prison to ministry, Jeff has a fascinating story – and I enjoyed my chat with him so much!⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ He, and his wife and partner-in-ministry Lynn Springer, co-founded Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc. (Greenwich, CT), the first ministry in the United States created to provide confidential support and pastoral care to individuals, families and organizations with white-collar and other nonviolent incarceration issues.⠀⠀
Listen on YouTube:
You can also listen in your browser at www.Same24HoursPodcast.com, or in your favorite podcast app (iTunes, Stitcher, Podbean, Spotify) by searching “The Same 24 Hours”⠀ Purchase Meredith Atwood’s new book, The Year of No Nonsense, here. ⠀ About The Year of No Nonsense: ⠀Exhausted and overworked lawyer, triathlete, wife, and mom Meredith Atwood decided one morning that she’d had it. She didn’t take her kids to school. She didn’t go to work. She didn’t go to the gym. When she pulled herself out of bed hours later than she should have, she found a note from her husband next to two empty bottles of wine and a stack of unpaid bills: You need to get your sh*t together. And that’s what Meredith began to do, starting with identifying the nonsense in her life that was holding her back: saying “yes” too much, keeping frenemies around, and more. In The Year of No Nonsense, Atwood shares what she learned, tackling struggles with work, family, and body image, and also willpower and time management. Ultimately, she’s the tough-as-nails coach /slash/ best friend who shares a practical plan for identifying and getting rid of your own nonsense in order to move forward and live an authentic, healthy life. From recognizing lies you believe about yourself and your abilities, to making a “nonsense” list and developing a “no nonsense blueprint,” this book walks you through reclaiming yourself with grit and determination, step by step. With targeted, practical chapters to help you stop feeling stuck and get on with your life, The Year of No Nonsense is equal parts girlfriend and been-there-done-that. The best part? Like any friend, she helps you get to the other side. ⠀
On Friday, Sept. 6, 2019, 9 am ET, Khalil Cumberbatch, Chief Strategist at New Yorkers United for Justice, was our guest on The Criminal Justice Insider Podcast with Babz Rawls Ivy & Jeff Grant – The Voice of CT Criminal Justice. Live on WNHH 103.5 FM New Haven, rebroadcast at 5 pm. Live-streamed and podcast everywhere, see below. Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
Khalil currently serves as Chief Strategist at New Yorkers United for Justice, a coalition of broad and diverse organizations whose goal is to pass criminal justice reform legislation in New York State. He previously served as Associate Vice President of Policy at the Fortune Society, a reentry organization whose goal is to build people and not prisons, and in leadership positions at JustLeadershipUSA. He is also a lecturer at Columbia University School of Social Work.
Watch on YouTube:
Listen on SoundCloud:
______________________
The Criminal Justice Insider Podcastwith Babz Rawls Ivy and Jeff Grant is broadcast live at 9 am ET on the first and third Friday of each month Sept. through June, from the WNHH 103.5 FM studios in New Haven. It is rebroadcast on WNHH at 5 pm ET the same day. Podcast and Archive available all the time, everywhere.
Fri., Sept. 6, 2019: Khalil Cumberbatch, Chief Strategist at New Yorkers United for Justice
Fri., Sept. 20, 2019: Aaron T. Kinzel, Lecturer in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Michigan-Dearborn
Fri., Oct. 4, 2019: Charlie Grady, Outreach Specialist for the FBI CT Community Outreach Program
Fri., Oct. 18, 2019: Michael Kimelman, Former Hedge Funder and Author of Confessions of a Wall Street Insider: A Cautionary Tale of Rats, Feds, and Banksters
Fri., Nov. 1, 2019: Corey Brinson, Former Attorney Convicted for a White Collar Crime who is running for Hartford City Council
Fri., Nov. 15, 2019: Cathryn Lavery, Ph.D., Asst. Chair & Graduate Coordinator for the Iona College Criminal Justice Department
Fri., Dec. 6, 2019: “Free Prison Phone Calls” Show, Guests to be Announced.
Fri. Dec. 20, 2019: John Hamilton, CEO, Liberation Programs
Season Two Guests:
Fri., Sept. 9, 2018: Kennard Ray, CT Unlock the Vote and Candidate for CT State Legislator Fri., Sept. 21, 2018: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50 Fri., Oct. 5, 2018: Sue Gunderman & Beth Hines, CT Reentry Roundtables Fri., Oct. 19, 2018: Venice Michalsen, Assoc. Professor of Justice Studies, Montclair State University Fri., Nov. 16, 2018: Andrew Clark, Director of the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy, Central Connecticut State University Fri., Dec. 7, 2018: Glenn E. Martin, Founder/Consultant of GEM Trainers and Past-President and Founder of JustLeadershipUSA Fri., Dec. 21, 2018: Fernando Muniz, CEO of Community Solutions, Inc., and community leader Rosa Correa. Fri., Jan. 4, 2019: New Years Retrospective Show Looking Back at Past CJI Guests. Fri. Jan. 18, 2019: Peter Henning, Law Prof. at Wayne State University and “White Collar Watch” columnist for the NY Times. Fri., Feb. 1, 2019: Jeffrey Deskovic, CEO of The Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation who was Exonerated after Serving 16 Years in Prison Fri., Feb. 15, 2019: Jeffrey Abramowitz, Executive Director for Reentry Services, JEVS Human Services, Philadelphia. Fri., Mar. 1, 2019, Rollin Cook, CT Commissioner of Correction Fri., Mar. 15, 2019: Dieter Tejada, Justice Impacted Criminal Justice Advocate Fri., Apr. 5, 2019: John Rowland, Former CT Governor Fri., Apr. 19, 2019: Gregg D. Caruso, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy at SUNY Corning & Co-Director of the Justice Without Retribution Network at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland Fri., May 3, 2019: Michael Taylor, CEO of Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center in the Greater New Haven area Fri., May 17, 2019: Tarra Simmons, Esq., Attorney & Criminal Justice Reform Advocate, Washington State Fri., June 7, 2019: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50, Part Deux! Fri., June 21, 2019: Marcus Bullock, CEO of Flikshop
Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
Our White Collar/Nonviolent Online Support Group meets Mondays, 7 pm ET, 4 pm PT. Details at prisonist.org.
From Rich Roll:
An epidemic of colossal proportions, millions struggle with substance addiction. Suffering in silence, they too often slip through the cracks, desperate and alone.
As a society, it’s incumbent upon us to better address the problem. Improve our collective understanding of its underlying causes. And enhance access to the resources required to heal the decaying hungry ghosts among us.
It is for these reasons I felt compelled to share the story of Rev. Jeff Grant – a former well-respected New York City attorney who got hooked on painkillers and started making decisions so bad, he lost everything.
Like so many, Jeff’s using started rather innocently in the aftermath of a basketball injury. But it didn’t take long before the tectonic plates of his ethical landscape began to shift. Under the influence, he perpetrated a series of financial misdeeds that led to losing control of his law firm. A suicide attempt prompted sobriety, but the long shadow cast by past actions revisited Jeff with a felony fraud conviction and a federal prison sentence.
Video on YouTube:
After serving 18 months, Jeff was faced with re-entry. His old life was no longer an option. He had to create an entirely new one.
Searching for a meaningful spiritual life line to help make sense of his transgressions and inform his trajectory moving forward, Jeff entered the Seminary, earning a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in New York, with a focus in Christian Social Ethics.
Upon graduation, he began serving at an inner-city church in Bridgeport, Connecticut as Associate Minister and Director of Prison Ministries. It is here that Jeff finds his calling assisting convicted felons and their families to navigate the treacherous waters of civilian re-entry.
Now an ordained minister with 16+ years of continuous sobriety, Jeff is the co-founder of Progressive Prison Ministries, the world’s first ministry created to provide confidential support to individuals, families and organizations with white collar incarceration issues. He has been profiled in a variety of media outlets including Inc., Forbes and Business Insider, has graced the stage at The Nantucket Project(where we first met) and hosts the Criminal Justice Insider Podcast.
This is his story.
It’s a conversation about the perils of addiction and the joys of sobriety. It’s about the the opioid epidemic and the prison industrial complex it supports. And it’s about how spirituality and divinity can pave the road to redemption.
Not just a cautionary tale from the perspective of a white collar felon, this is also discussion about what happens to the by-standing family members and loved ones, often overlooked casualties in the perpetrator’s wake.
But ultimately this is a story about absolution. It’s about confronting past misdeeds. Making amends. Finding grace. And giving back to those in need by sharing the experience and wisdom procured along the way.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: was a German pastor, author, theologian, anti-Nazi dissident, and key founding member of the Confessing Church.
Reinhold Niebuhr: was an American Reformed theologian, author, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years
Michael Phelps: Most decorated Olympian of all time, with a total of 28 medals
Our White Collar/Nonviolent Online Support Group meets Mondays, 7 pm ET, 4 pm PT. Details at prisonist.org.
From Rich Roll:
An epidemic of colossal proportions, millions struggle with substance addiction. Suffering in silence, they too often slip through the cracks, desperate and alone.
As a society, it’s incumbent upon us to better address the problem. Improve our collective understanding of its underlying causes. And enhance access to the resources required to heal the decaying hungry ghosts among us.
It is for these reasons I felt compelled to share the story of Rev. Jeff Grant – a former well-respected New York City attorney who got hooked on painkillers and started making decisions so bad, he lost everything.
Like so many, Jeff’s using started rather innocently in the aftermath of a basketball injury. But it didn’t take long before the tectonic plates of his ethical landscape began to shift. Under the influence, he perpetrated a series of financial misdeeds that led to losing control of his law firm. A suicide attempt prompted sobriety, but the long shadow cast by past actions revisited Jeff with a felony fraud conviction and a federal prison sentence.
Video on YouTube:
After serving 18 months, Jeff was faced with re-entry. His old life was no longer an option. He had to create an entirely new one.
Searching for a meaningful spiritual life line to help make sense of his transgressions and inform his trajectory moving forward, Jeff entered the Seminary, earning a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in New York, with a focus in Christian Social Ethics.
Upon graduation, he began serving at an inner-city church in Bridgeport, Connecticut as Associate Minister and Director of Prison Ministries. It is here that Jeff finds his calling assisting convicted felons and their families to navigate the treacherous waters of civilian re-entry.
Now an ordained minister with 16+ years of continuous sobriety, Jeff is the co-founder of Progressive Prison Ministries, the world’s first ministry created to provide confidential support to individuals, families and organizations with white collar incarceration issues. He has been profiled in a variety of media outlets including Inc., Forbes and Business Insider, has graced the stage at The Nantucket Project(where we first met) and hosts the Criminal Justice Insider Podcast.
This is his story.
It’s a conversation about the perils of addiction and the joys of sobriety. It’s about the the opioid epidemic and the prison industrial complex it supports. And it’s about how spirituality and divinity can pave the road to redemption.
Not just a cautionary tale from the perspective of a white collar felon, this is also discussion about what happens to the by-standing family members and loved ones, often overlooked casualties in the perpetrator’s wake.
But ultimately this is a story about absolution. It’s about confronting past misdeeds. Making amends. Finding grace. And giving back to those in need by sharing the experience and wisdom procured along the way.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: was a German pastor, author, theologian, anti-Nazi dissident, and key founding member of the Confessing Church.
Reinhold Niebuhr: was an American Reformed theologian, author, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years
Michael Phelps: Most decorated Olympian of all time, with a total of 28 medals
Jeff was interviewed by Tony Savino, News Director of WGCH on April 17, 2019. Big thanks to Tony, Jim Campbell and all at WGCH for all your support. Details below.
Listen to the radio interview (starts at 0:26):
Event: World’s First Confidential Online White Collar/Nonviolent Support Group will Celebrate Its 150th Meeting, April 22, 2019, 7 pm ET
Greenwich, CT – (April 9, 2019) – Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc. (www.prisonist.org) proudly announces that it will be hosting the 150th consecutive weekly meeting of the world’s first and only confidential Online White Collar/Nonviolent Support Group on Monday, April 22nd at 7:00 pm EDT.
Jeff Grant, J.D., M.Div., who developed and hosts the meeting, explained the significance of the milestone meeting. “We are extremely proud that this group gets bigger and better each week. When we started the group three years ago, we had a dream that people with white collar/nonviolent criminal justice issues living in shame, guilt, fear and isolation could form a supportive community to accept full responsibility for our behavior, make amends, and embrace a new life of compassion, empathy and kindness. We support each other and reach out to others suffering in silence.”
Every Monday evening, Progressive Prison Ministries, through its popular criminal justice resource site prisonist.org, hosts the one-hour meeting. Attendance is steadily increasing. “We’ve had over 125 men and women participating from 21 different states – and overseas,” Grant said.
“While everyone who participates in the forum has been prosecuted for a white collar or nonviolent crime, the group is solution oriented and dedicated to understanding and encouragement,” Grant explained.
Several individuals from the group have volunteered their testimonies online.
“This support group has given me an opportunity to share my thoughts, concerns and emotional trauma with a compassionate and understanding group of people who all traveled a similar journey…” said Jeffrey Abramowitz, Pennsylvania
“Finding the group was such a turning point for me as I was lost. The group helped me with my immense feelings of guilt and how to overcome issues that I never knew would exist for me…” Jacqueline Polverari, Connecticut
”I wish that there would have been a White-Collar Support Group when I got out of prison over ten years ago… my pain curve would not have been so steep.” Douglas Mairena, Virginia
Grant explained, “Most white-collar criminals can’t go back to their old lives and careers, so what choice do they really have? Why not embrace a completely new life, with new options, and new opportunities centered on spirituality and doing the right things? The most fortunate are those who figure out that their attempts to solve problems in isolation are not working, and that they no longer have to go it alone.”
For those who would like to participate each week, Progressive Prison Ministries sends out login instructions with a unique link for that week’s meeting. Participants choose to login via video on a computer, tablet or smart phone that is equipped with a camera, or audio only via phone. Support group information and contact information is at https://prisonist.org/white-collar-support-group. Those currently on supervised release, probation or parole, MUST first discuss participation in the group with their parole or probation officer.
About Progressive Prison Ministries: Established in 2012 in Greenwich, Connecticut, Progressive Prison Ministries is the world’s first ministry created to support individuals, families and organizations with white-collar and other nonviolent incarceration issues. More information is available at Progressive Prison Ministries and on its social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
About Progressive Prison Ministries’ Co-Founders:
Co-founders Jeff Grant and Lynn Springer were recently featured in a twelve-page article in Greenwich Magazine: “The Redemption of Jeff Grant,” March 2018 issue. Jeff is also the former Executive Director of Family ReEntry, a Bridgeport, CT based criminal justice organization. After an addiction to prescription opioids and serving almost fourteen months in a Federal prison for a white-collar crime he committed when he was a lawyer, Jeff began his own reentry – earning a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in New York City with a focus in Christian Social Ethics.
Opioid Addiction to Prison for a White Collar Crime to Divinity School to Co-Founding the World’s First Ministry Created to Support Individuals, Families & Organizations with White Collar/Nonviolent Incarceration Issues (short video).
Friday, March 15, 2019, 9 am ET, Dieter Tejada, J.D., justice impacted criminal justice advocate, was our guest on Criminal Justice Insider with Babz Rawls Ivy & Jeff Grant – The Voice of CT Criminal Justice. Live on WNHH 103.5 FM New Haven and live-streaming at newhavenindependent.org. Rebroadcast at 5 pm. Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
Dieter Tejada is a Justice Impacted Criminal Justice Advocate. Mr. Tejada expertise in the field of criminal justice is partially based on the traditional legal training and education he received while attending Vanderbilt University School of Law. Though he is incredibly grateful for the education, training, and Juris Doctorate degree he received as a scholarship student at at National powerhouse (top 15 ranked) law school, Dieter respectfully cannot credit Vanderbilt and traditional legal training for his expertise and passion for criminal justice advocacy. Rather Dieter derives the bulk of both his passion and expertise in the field of criminal law from personal experience—as a high school senior Dieter was arrested for the first time and eventually incarcerated based on a plea conviction. This arrest and its aftermath serve as the basis for Dieter qualification as a “Justice Impacted” Criminal Justice Advocate and Expert.
Dieter has utilized his expertise by helping to provide direct representation services at three of the premier public defense offices in the Nation, across three States—in NY (The Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Practice), in TN (The Nashville Defenders), and in CT (The Office of the CT Public Defenders).
He has also served clients in clinical settings, and pre-trial diversionary settings with such notable organizations as CTs Family ReEntry (the largest ReEntry service provider in his home state).
Additionally, Dieter has lobbied for, and helped spearhead legislative criminal justice reform efforts with such notable advocacy organizations as the Smart Justice Initiative of the ACLU, and Yale Law School’s Legislative Advocacy Group. Though it has been more then 11 years since his arrest and incarceration, Dieter still remembers how it was to be a juvenile in the system of criminal justice—and ever since his release from prison Dieter has made sure use this memory to serve others. He has done so, by speaking to-sharing his story and its hard-learned lessons—with high school and middle school-aged youths. He has specialized in mentoring at-risk youths, and even helped found and facilitate a mentoring program at the high school from which he graduated. Mr. Tejada is also a widely sought after speaker on the subject of criminal justice advocacy and reform. He has spoken at, and led panel discussions at some of the most distinguished settings in the legal field, including at Yale Law School’s Rebellious Lawyering conference. Dieter has, and continues to focus efforts on bridging barriers and loosening the locks to the legal profession for his fellows-the Justice Impacted. Dieter has worked extensively with the Prison Reform and Education Project (P.R.E.P) of NYU Law. Beyond collaborating with P.R.E.P in organizing the Roundtable Event that he will discuss on the show, Dieter helped setup and launch the first ever Law School Scholarship reserved for Formerly Incarcerated and Justice Impacted individuals and their family members. Finally Dieter has been interviewed and profiled and quote on criminal justice related podcasts and in nationally syndicated publications such as Law360 (LexisNexis’ legal news affiliate).
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Criminal Justice Insider with Babz Rawls Ivy and Jeff Grant is broadcast live at 9 am (ET) on the first and third Friday of each month from Sept. to July, from the WNHH 103.5 FM studios in New Haven, live-streamed everywhere at newhavenindependent.org. It is also on live on Facebook Live (video) at https://www.facebook.com/wnhhradio. It is rebroadcast on WNHH at 5 pm the same day. Find all of our shows archived on SoundCloud at https://soundcloud.com/new-haven…/…/criminal-justice-insider. An article about each show is published a few days later in the New Haven Independent (newhavenindependent.org). Please “like” us on Facebook! Contact us: [email protected]
Season Two Guests:
Fri., Sept. 9: Kennard Ray, CT Unlock the Vote and Candidate for CT State Legislator Fri., Sept. 21: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50 Fri., Oct. 5: Sue Gunderman & Beth Hines, CT Reentry Roundtables Fri., Oct. 19: Venice Michalsen, Assoc. Professor of Justice Studies, Montclair State University Fri., Nov. 16: Andrew Clark, Director of the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy, Central Connecticut State University Fri., Dec. 7: Glenn E. Martin, Founder/Consultant of GEM Trainers and Past-President and Founder of JustLeadershipUSA Fri., Dec. 21: Ferando Muñiz, CEO of Community Solutions, Inc. and Rosa Correa, Community Leader Fri., Jan. 4: CJI New Year’s Retrospective Show Looking Back at Past Guests Fri., Jan. 19: Peter J. Henning, Professor of Law, Wayne State University & “White Collar Watch” Columnist, NY Times Fri., Feb. 1: Jeffrey Deskovic, CEO of The Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation who was Exonerated after Serving 16 Years in Prison Fri., Feb. 15: Jeffrey Abramowitz, Executive Director for Reentry Services, JEVS Human Services, Philadelphia. Fri., Mar. 1, Rollin Cook, CT Commissioner of Correction Fri., Mar. 15: Dieter Tejada, J.D., Justice Impacted Criminal Justice Advocate Fri., Apr. 5: John Rowland, Former CT Governor Fri., Apr. 19: Gregg D. Caruso, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy at SUNY Corning & Co-Director of the Justice Without Retribution Network at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland Fri., May 3: Michael Taylor, CEO of Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center in the Greater New Haven area Fri., May 17: Tarra Simmons, Esq., Attorney & Criminal Justice Reform Advocate, Washington State Fri., June 7: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50, Part Deux! Fri., June 21: Marcus Bullock, CEO of Flikshop
Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
On Friday, June 21, 2019, 9 am, Marcus Bullock, CEO of Flikshop, was our guest on Criminal Justice Insider with Babz Rawls Ivy & Jeff Grant – The Voice of CT Criminal Justice. Live on WNHH 103.5 FM New Haven and live-streaming at newhavenindependent.org. Rebroadcast at 5 pm. 24/7 Podcast links below. Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
Watch on YouTube:
From Marcus: I launched one of the most impactful apps in the Apple App Store and Android Google Play stores…Flikshop.
Flikshop keeps families that suffer from incarceration connected. Our users can take a photo, add some quick text, and for $0.99 Flikshop prints the photo and text on a real tangible postcard and ships it directly to any person in any jail, prison, youth facility or immigration facility.
In 1996 I was arrested and faced LIFE in prison. I was 15 years old and ended up getting sentenced to serve 8 years in adult prisons throughout the State of Virginia.
Because of my experience, I learned how important mail is to the 2.3 million men and women in prison and ended up creating a business that helps keep each of them connected to their families. After the success of the Flikshop mobile app I went on to create the Flikshop School of Business to assist in building reentry eco-systems for men and women released from prison that center around entrepreneurship, coding, and mobile app development.
Our award-winning and program has won: 2015 Innovator of the Year (The Daily Record) and 2016 Aspen Ideas Festival Award (Booz Allen Hamilton).
I sit on the board of directors of Justice Policy Institute and the advisory board for The Aspen Institute’s Opportunity Youth Incentive Fund.
My other specialties include team building and business development training.
AUDACIOUS. INTEGRITY. BE BETTER.
I encourage you to watch my TEDx Talk “The Prison to Entrepreneurship Pipeline” to learn more about my journey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycCZrtCkDY8 ____________________
Please tell your friends, colleagues and clients:
The Criminal Justice Insider Podcast with Babz Rawls Ivy and Jeff Grant is broadcast live at 9 am ET on the first and third Friday of each month from the WNHH 103.5 FM studios in New Haven. It is rebroadcast on WNHH at 5 pm ET the same day.
An article about each show is published a few days later in the New Haven Independent (newhavenindependent.org).
Please “like” us on Facebook! More info here. Contact us: [email protected]
Season Two Guests:
Fri., Sept. 9, 2018: Kennard Ray, CT Unlock the Vote and Candidate for CT State Legislator Fri., Sept. 21, 2018: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50 Fri., Oct. 5, 2018: Sue Gunderman & Beth Hines, CT Reentry Roundtables Fri., Oct. 19, 2018: Venice Michalsen, Assoc. Professor of Justice Studies, Montclair State University Fri., Nov. 16, 2018: Andrew Clark, Director of the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy, Central Connecticut State University Fri., Dec. 7, 2018: Glenn E. Martin, Founder/Consultant of GEM Trainers and Past-President and Founder of JustLeadershipUSA Fri., Dec. 21, 2018: Ferando Muñiz, CEO of Community Solutions, Inc. and Rosa Correa, Community Leader Fri., Jan. 4, 2019: CJI New Year’s Retrospective Show Looking Back at Past Guests Fri., Jan. 19, 2019: Peter J. Henning, Professor of Law, Wayne State University & “White Collar Watch” Columnist, NY Times Fri., Feb. 1, 2019: Jeffrey Deskovic, CEO of The Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation who was Exonerated after Serving 16 Years in Prison Fri., Feb. 15, 2019: Jeffrey Abramowitz, Executive Director for Reentry Services, JEVS Human Services, Philadelphia. Fri., Mar. 1, 2019, Hon. Rollin Cook, CT Commissioner of Correction Fri., Mar. 15, 2019: Dieter Tejada, J.D., Justice Impacted Criminal Justice Advocate Fri., Apr. 5, 2019: John Rowland, Former CT Governor Fri., Apr. 19, 2019: Gregg D. Caruso, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy at SUNY Corning & Co-Director of the Justice Without Retribution Network at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland Fri., May 3, 2019: Michael Taylor, CEO of Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center in the Greater New Haven area Fri., May 17, 2019: Tarra Simmons, Esq., Attorney & Criminal Justice Reform Advocate, Washington State Fri., June 7, 2019: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50, Part Deux! Fri., June 21, 2019: Marcus Bullock, CEO of Flikshop
Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
Friday, June 7, 2019, 9 am ET, Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50, was our guest on The Criminal Justice Insider Podcast with Babz Rawls Ivy & Jeff Grant – The Voice of CT Criminal Justice. Live on WNHH 103.5 FM New Haven, rebroadcast at 5 pm. Live-streaming and podcast everywhere, see below. Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More than Ever.
Louis Reed is the National Organizer for #Cut50, an initiative of Van Jones’s Dream Corps. He brings to #Cut50 years of experience in government, criminal justice expertise, policy advocacy, business, and public health.
Watch on YouTube:
Listen on SoundCloud:
Louis holds degrees in criminal justice and psychology, and is a board-certified addictions counselor and licensed alcohol & addictions practitioner. Prior to joining #Cut50, Louis was the Connecticut Policy Strategist for the Katal Center for Health, Equity and Justice where he worked on SB-13, and ran his own addiction and mental health practice in Bridgeport, CT, serving clients across Southern Connecticut.
Louis’s experience in government includes conceptualizing and serving as director of the Mayor’s Office for Reentry Affairs in the City of Bridgeport, CT. There, he developed systems and practices for the City to coordinate employment, housing, access to treatment, and other services for all persons impacted by the criminal justice system both in and returning to the City after incarceration.
His policy reform experience includes working with the Connecticut legislature for successful enactment of legislation related to reforms to pretrial practices, expanding access to licenses for people living with criminal records, limiting asset forfeiture practices by law enforcement, and strengthening reentry practices and services for people returning from prison.
Louis is a Huffington Post contributor on Prison Traumatic Stress Disorder, has appeared on C-SPAN and MSNBC, and in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and other publications. He has also consulted for the White House, United States Department of Justice, Fortune® 100 Corporations, private, state and federal agencies, and is a 2017 JustLeadershipUSA fellow.
Louis has received many awards recognizing his work and leadership, including the US Senate recognition for Professional of the Year; 2017 Best Innovative Practices by the US Conference of Mayors; and a 2018 citation from the Connecticut State General Assembly for his statewide contributions on best reentry practices and community service.
Louis lives in Connecticut, consults in special projects management, and also operates his practice part-time. ____________________
Please tell your friends, colleagues and clients:
The Criminal Justice Insider Podcast with Babz Rawls Ivy and Jeff Grant is broadcast live at 9 am ET on the first and third Friday of each month from the WNHH 103.5 FM studios in New Haven. It is rebroadcast on WNHH at 5 pm ET the same day.
Fri., Apr. 5, 2019: John Rowland, Former CT Governor
Fri., Apr. 19, 2019: Gregg D. Caruso, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy at SUNY Corning & Co-Director of the Justice Without Retribution Network at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland
Fri., May 3, 2019: Michael Taylor, CEO of Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center in the Greater New Haven area
Fri., May 17, 2019: Tarra Simmons, Esq., Attorney & Criminal Justice Reform Advocate, Washington State
Fri., June 7, 2019: Louis L. Reed, National Organizer for #Cut50, Part Deux!
Fri., June 21, 2019: Marcus Bullock, CEO of Flikshop
Sponsored by the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven – Now More Than Ever.
