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After a short hiatus for the summer, Let’s Talk is back.

To contribute to the overall effort against COVID-19, a project to manufacture cloth face masks was implemented at Archambault Institution (Minimum), in Quebec. As a result, over 2,000 masks were produced in a few weeks. The experience gave offenders the opportunity to gain new skills and give back to the community. Consequently, 300 masks were donated to two community organizations working with homeless people in the area.

I am pleased to be a part of the launch of the new web-based Let’s Talk Express (LTE). For as long as I can remember, Let’s Talk has always been an important part of CSC.

Among the 2016 graduates at St. Lawrence College (SLC) being honoured for their hard work on June 17, 2016 was CSC Commissioner Don Head who received an honorary diploma.

For the last three years, the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has been developing a Digital Education Project (DEP) to support technological advancements in learning environments behind prison walls. CSC has been working hard to include technology in the classroom to provide better access to learning opportunities and competency in technological environments and support reintegration success.

Michael K. Olotu, Director General, Rights, Redress and Resolution, has worn many hats at the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC). Starting off as a Correctional Officer and then a Parole Officer, Michael has gone on to serve in senior level roles at NHQ including, Senior Director of Operations with CORCAN, Director of Evaluation, Director of Investigations and Director of Strategy and Corporate Services in what is now known as the Indigenous Initiatives Directorate.

As a team, the Prairie Region chiefs of education and teachers recognize that they are fortunate to have the ability to work from home. Teachers have continued to be busy during this time by building teaching resources, participating in professional development, and updating curriculum tools for the students.

As discussions around mental health have entered mainstream conversation in our communities over the last few years, supporting employees’ mental health needs became increasingly imperative to senior management at the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC).

On February 21, 2018, the Regional Mental Health Centre (RMHC) opened its doors to community partners. Located in the Quebec Region, the RMHC is a multi-level security facility for male inmates who have various mental health needs.  

On January 20, 2022, Tam Le, a minimum security offender at Stony Mountain Institution, participated in a virtual Walls to Bridges symposium. Tam was not just an observer of the Zoom symposium, though. He was one of the presenters who discussed a study he had coauthored with university professor Dr. Judith Harris.

Recently, Stony Mountain Institution has launched a beekeeping initiative with the help of CORCAN and community partners, fuelled by staff ingenuity and inmate participation.

On Saturday, May 21, 2022, Canada’s Penitentiary Museum, in Kingston, opened its doors again to the public after the pandemic closed them in 2020. Two weeks later, the museum celebrated its reopening with a special guest who brought popcorn.

A group of correctional officers from Edmonton Institution (EI) established a workplace fundraising committee in response to the needs of families whose loved ones perished or were injured in the line of duty as correctional officers. Even though this cause was the drive behind their initial efforts, the EI Relief Fund has contributed to a variety of charitable organizations and causes since its inception. The EI Relief Fund fundraises through a variety of ways including receiving donations, activities such as BBQs and 50/50 draws.

In September we had the pleasure of sharing a story about the Piapot modular build, an initiative that gave offenders at Saskatchewan Penitentiary the opportunity to give back t

This past summer, Canadians were saddened when hundreds of unmarked graves of Indigenous children were discovered at residential schools in western Canada. By September 30, the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, hundreds more had been identified on the grounds of former residential schools in various other regions across Canada. People across the country, including inmates at Pacific Institution, wanted to highlight the importance of honouring the Survivors and recognizing the impact of the residential school system on Indigenous communities and individuals.

In the fall of 2019, CORCAN instructor Mark Charleson delivered a construction course to eight residents at Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge. The course taught residents basic construction skills, such as planning, gathering materials, measuring, cutting and building. The residents divided into two groups to put into practice what they had learned. Each group was tasked with building a shed.

From April 18-24 2021, the Correctional Service of Canada celebrated National Volunteer Week.