PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. — For the past 33 years, incarcerated people at the Ozaukee County Jail have been coming to a special classroom to learn and better themselves through a unique literacy program that's changing lives.
When Paul Odhiambo Oyugi arrived at the jail, he barely spoke English. Now, he not only knows the language but has also earned his GED.
Watch: Ozaukee County Jail literacy program helps the incarcerated build better futures
"I now understand what I don't know," Odhiambo Oyugi said. "You have to encourage yourself. If others could do it, I could also do it."
Odhiambo Oyugi is one of more than 300 graduates of the Ozaukee Jail Literacy Program, an initiative that brings real teachers into the jail to work with detainees three days every week.
Steve Mort is currently incarcerated at the Ozaukee County Jail. He also has received his GED through the program, and he plans to parlay the knowledge into a job in the trades after getting out of jail.
"They offer the human side of things. They're just very kind," Steve Mort said of his teachers.
The program is unlocking minds and opening doors for inmates who might otherwise have limited opportunities for education while incarcerated.
Jonathan Hahm is a retired teacher and administrator who works with the program. He tailors instruction to meet individual needs.
"This is the only jail in the state that has actual teachers teaching year-round," Hahm said. "Everybody's at a different level, and so we teach to what their needs are."
The program is run and fully funded by a local charity. For charity president Heather Dvoran, donations from the community represent a bet on the goodness of people.
"They see something in our inmates that maybe our inmates don't see in themselves," Dvoran said.
According to the sheriff, graduates of this program are much less likely to reoffend and more likely to progress in life.
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