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Residents praise overtime savings and press jail on dyslexia screening and programming
Summary
Two public commenters praised overtime savings and asked about a training program and dyslexia screening for inmates; staff said OutReach had offered screening and tutoring services and staff will follow up.
Public commenters used the meeting's public-comment period to praise financial trends and press the board on inmate education services.
Joan Hodowanis of Scranton told the board she was "very pleased to see in the warden's backup papers, the overtime comparison chart" and said "he's only used 38% of his $2,000,000 budget," calling that a positive trend she hoped would continue. Later she referenced a newspaper story about a prison training program and asked about Johnson College and the status of hiring trained personnel to screen inmates for dyslexia and provide tutoring.
Deputy Warden Colleen Horsell responded that OutReach "has suggested their services because they have a screening process for dyslexia and then they could tutor," and said she was not aware of other organizations providing that screening. Bev DeBorrow of Scranton also asked about inmate amenities, noting a broken TV in a women's block and requesting Philadelphia Inquirer access on inmate tablets. Board staff said they would follow up on the subscription request and the dyslexia screening when the staff member who led the earlier work (Warren) is present.
