Shan Weggeland

PCC Education Coordinator Shan Weggeland said this program and others like it strike at the heart of recidivism by building self-esteem and giving inmates a solid base of job skills to avoid making the same mistakes.

She works with minimum-security inmates, assigning them to classes and assisting them in their transition to the outside with employment referrals and further education.

Weggeland noted that the college program also works closely with drug and alcohol treatment staff, mental health counselors and security staff.

Along with Weggeland, there are 18 other staff at the Coffee Creek facility who provide work-based education and vocational assistance.

"I was meant to work here," said Weggeland."It is not always positive, but when good things happen, it's pretty spectacular.It's more challenging, but definitely more rewarding."

Taryanne McIntosh pounds away on a keyboard in the Destinations Computer Lab, doctoring up her resume to prepare for the job hunt she'll undertake next month when she is a free woman.She wants to become an apartment manager, using her Microsoft Word, Excel and basic computer skills to get ahead.