WHO WE ARE
We are a group of individuals with a variety of talents and insights to offer, brought together by a mission to improve Buffalo, reduce recidivism, and help younger people find their way.
As some of us are formerly incarcerated individuals, we have a very real perspective to offer at-risk youth. We come from places they can relate to, and we acknowledge that many of the skills they need cannot be learned in a classroom.
Furthermore, as people who have survived the transition out of prison, we comprehensively understand the challenges associated with re-entry. We aim to do more than help people make successful transitions; we wish to lift a societal stigma and spread much-needed awareness of problems surrounding our penal system.
HISTORY OF THE MAN PROGRAM
We are a group of individuals with a variety of talents and insights to offer, brought together by a mission to improve Buffalo, reduce recidivism, and help younger people find their way.
As some of us are formerly incarcerated individuals, we have a very real perspective to offer at-risk youth. We come from places they can relate to, and we acknowledge that many of the skills they need cannot be learned in a classroom.
Furthermore, as people who have survived the transition out of prison, we comprehensively understand the challenges associated with re-entry. We aim to do more than help people make successful transitions; we wish to lift a societal stigma and spread much-needed awareness of problems surrounding our penal system.
HISTORY OF THE MAN PROGRAM
- 1994 - While in his fifteenth year of incarceration, Jerome Wright observed a growing percentage of younger incarcerated individuals, a population that was excessively violent and lacked respect and direction. To address the turbulent environment of prison, Wright and his associates began a movement. They held multiple discussions on the root causes of these behavioral issues, and they pinpointed an answer: many young people lack mentors and role models both in and out of prison. Wright and his partners designed a program of workshops, classes, and seminars to help those younger prisoners become "men" - based on the tenets of "Change, Responsibility, Empathy, Accountability, and Maturation." This was the start of the M.A.N. Program.
- 1999 - After witnessing unjust parole practices, families of incarcerated individuals organized a protest in Manhattan. Their efforts evolved into the Coalition for Parole Restoration, led by Jerome's wife Susan Wright. Learn more about their history here.
- 2009 - After his release, Jerome wrote a series of articles titled "Realities of Reentry" for the Coalition for Parole Restoration. He and Susan relocated to Buffalo, NY.
- 2014 -The Coalition for Parole Restoration absorbs the M.A.N. Program. Bennett High School becomes their first official site of operation in Buffalo.
- 2015 -The M.A.N. program leaves Bennett High in search of its own space of operation.