Features

It was a long, hot summer. Usually this type of statement in a correctional facility is an indicator that things are not going well and trouble is brewing, but at Mission Minimum, it was a sign that good deeds were on the horizon.

A new CORCAN project began in the Quebec Region in the summer of 2018 to support offenders on conditional release with their social and occupational reintegration. This initiative allows them to work as installers on a transitional basis to develop and apply technical and job-related skills prior to entering the job market.

Tucked away at Nova Institution in Truro, Nova Scotia offenders are hard at work at the new Pulse assembly and testing site. This site is operated by CORCAN as part of the offender employment and employability program.

What is the significance of a uniform? For community agents like police, firefighters or paramedics, a uniform is not a frivolously designed garment: It’s a visually distinct identifier that signifies a social purpose. After all, having an easily recognizable signifier allows citizens to determine the community agent’s purpose.

The Official Languages Act (OLA) Part 7 requires that Government of Canada departments take positive measures to enhance the vitality of English and French linguistic minority communities in Canada by supporting their development. Official language minority communities (OLMCs) are generally English-speaking people in the province of Quebec and francophones in the rest of Canada.

Inuit communities share ties to Canada's oceans that span generations. They value the oceans as a source of livelihood, food security, and transportation routes. The Nunavut Fisheries and Marine Training Consortium (NFMTC), a not-for-profit organization created in 2005, provides training opportunities to Nunavut land claim beneficiaries interested in pursuing careers in the fishing industry through the Kisarvik Program.

Kat Ferguson and Sharp Dopler are just a generation apart, but their experiences as “out” members of the LGBTQ2 community could not have been more different. Because of a superior officer’s homophobia, Sharp was subject to an unfounded military police investigation while working with the Cadet Instructors Cadre as a member of the Canadian Armed Forces. The result was Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the end of a military career that had been a major part of Sharp’s life and identity.

Carrie Gouthro has worked for Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) for 22 years and has been involved in the Ontario Law Enforcement Torch Run (OLETR) for the same amount of time. The LETR is the world’s largest public awareness and grassroots fundraising organization for Special Olympics, and the Torch Run is the most well-known event hosted by the organization.

As CSC works to address cases of harassment and bullying within the organization, senior managers are encouraging employees to use the assortment of tools at their disposal to report inappropriate behaviour as soon as it happens.

On Thursday, January 18, 2018, Stony Mountain Institution (SMI) was honoured to host former NHL player Theoren (Theo) Fleury, who attended the institution to share his story of trauma and healing with offenders and staff.

One of the main goals of CORCAN, a special operating agency within the Correctional Service of Canada, is to help offenders develop marketable skills that can help them find employment and successfully re-integrate into society.

The Correctional Service of Canada Museum (also known as Canada’s Penitentiary Museum) has reopened its doors for the season and is already off to a record start. Curator Dave St. Onge says that 1,532 visitors have been through the museum since May 1, which represents a gain of 14 percent over the same time period last year.