My friend Chris Redlitz started The Last Mile at San Quentin with his wife Beverly Parenti. Through their program, Chris and Beverly strive to help prisoners at San Quentin develop entrepreneurial skills. They are the right people to lead this entrepreneurial course, as they are founders of Kicklabs and Transmedia Capital. Their extensive connections to business leaders from the technology sector enable them to bring numerous high powered executives into San Quentin for the purpose of inspiring and teaching the men who participate in The Last Mile program. They recently began their third cohort of students at San Quentin, and they’re introducing the program to prisoners in Los Angeles and in Michigan as well.

Last week Chris asked me to write an article to inspire some of the men in his group. He knew that I was teaching a course at San Francisco State University, and he thought the men might find a message of hope in the story of a long-term prisoner who transitioned into the role of university professor after his release. from confinement. I happily obliged and wrote the article. Chris submitted it to his contacts at The Daily Love and the news magazine published the article in today’s edition.

I’m glad to have contributed the article and hope it inspires prisoners enrolled in The Last Mile. If they sustain high levels of energy and discipline through the journey, they can triumph over current circumstances. I’d like to see more prisoners emerge with values, skills, and resources that translate into success.