The Program

Training Program Overview

IAGW is a rural residential training program which presumes that trainees work to support

Unless work schedule interferes, trainees must eat dinner together as a family.  Daily assigned chores must be done after dinner each evening.  Trainees meet together weekly and with counselors a minimum of once every two weeks or more frequently if mandated by an outside program.  All trainees workshops require attendance.

Within one day of acceptance into the program, intake procedure is completed.  Within one week of acceptance, the initial training plan is done.

Within one month of acceptance, trainee will have an assigned job and/or be in a job training or an educational program and will have reworked his Master Plan with his counselor.  He has applied for any entitlements due him, his initial budget is completed, and he is now contributing to his share of the living expense of the farm.

Within two months of acceptance, the trainee has opened a savings account.  All trainees and staff will be subject to random urinalysis.

Interview Procedure

Applicants for entry into the training program of IN A GOOD WAY are assessed by the  operations manager and/or the director based on their desire to work the guidelines set up on his Indidvual Training Plan and do whatever work is expected at IAGW. Interviews for placement with IN A GOOD WAY are scheduled by the person seeking entry and by appointment with the  operations manager and/or the program director. The operations manager and/or program director are also available for field assessments. During the interview process the operations manager and/or director determine the following:

• The applicant meets entry criteria;
• The applicant is open to community living in a goal-oriented facility;
• The applicant is willing to make a commitment;
• The applicant is willing to commit to the goals set forth in his Master Plan;
• The applicant fits in with the current clients and the program as a whole.

Interviews are conducted on a first-come, first-served basis. No eligible person will be turned away from applying for entry into the training program.  A waiting list is established when no bed space is available and every effort will be made for timely placement of the applicant if appropriate for entry into the program.  All applicants will be informed of the program offered by IN A GOOD WAY including financial obligations and the rules and regulations at interview time.

Waiting List

A waiting list for IN A GOOD WAY is maintained in the office. When someone applies for admission and no bed space is available, his name is placed on the waiting list. Such persons are given specific instructions for obtaining and maintaining their admission status. Non-compliance with these instructions will result in removal from the waiting list.

Any use of alcohol and/or illegal or non-prescription drugs during the interim period between application and interview, or interview and accetance, will result in removal from the waiting list.

Trainee Charges

Each trainee will be assessed a portion of the expense of living at IN A GOOD WAY.  Expense details will be provided in the 3rd week of the month and payment will be expected on the last day of the month.  The trainee will pay a portion of the utilities.  The house will  pay a portion of the utilities for the common area.

Recommendation for training

Individuals may apply for acceptance into the program.  Recommendations are also accepted and welcomed from parole and probation officers, chaplains, DOC staff, agencies, and family and friends of potential trainees if they have discussed it with the potential client.  However, people who wish to be trainees must ultimately contact IN A GOOD WAY personally to set up an interview.  If a man seeking training does not follow up by contacting IAGW within one week from date of recommendation from the initial contacting party, the recommendation will be considered void.

A recommendation form is available on our web site at www.inagoodway.org or by requesting a form by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to IN A GOOD WAY using the address on the website.

Nutrition and Physical Fitness

Our minds and our bodies must be healthy to attain the goals that we expect to reach during our lives.  We believe that if our trainees are educated about and understand the positive benefits of a healthy diet and exercise, they will follow that lifestyle.

IN A GOOD WAY provides mandatory and ongoing exercise and diet classes. After taking the classes, a resident can choose whether to continue with them.  We provide a diet that consists of home cooked meals. We recommended a heart healthy diet plan that includes:

 

• meats and other protein sources;
• fresh organic vegetables and fruits grown in our gardens;
• honey from our bees;
• cheese from our goats and sheep; and
• eggs from our chickens

An exercise room and a marked running/walking path are available to all trainees and staff.  A trained staff member or senior trainee assists new trainees in setting up an exercise program.

Diabetic trainees receive additional training specific to their needs.  Diabetic meals are available to anyone wanting to follow that diet regime.  Vegetarian meals are also available upon request.

Anger Management

Anger is reported to be a major contributor to incarceration, inability to hold a job, addiction, and family violence. Anger management is a key skill in avoiding a downfall in any of these areas. Participation in an ongoing anger management program is required of all trainees at IN A GOOD WAY.   This program will include building responsible communication skills.

Family Violence Prevention

Family violence prevention goes hand-in-hand with the recognition that family violence is a serious problem in our communities. Such recognition isn’t easy. This is a problem that often goes unnoticed and unreported. It remains invisible because family members are reluctant to report it and/or accept it as their ‘due.” Professionals may not detect the presence of violence or they may fail to report it when they realize it has occurred.

There are those who argue persuasively that the solutions to family violence are to be found among the various social ills that directly or indirectly influence its victims, such as poverty, unemployment, and inadequate housing. However, societal-level solutions are often the most difficult to describe and implement.

On a more practical level, there is considerable agreement that “violence begets violence.” That is, the acceptance and glorification of violence, the victimization of children, and marital violence all contribute to the level of violence in our communities. A number of examples appear to strengthen the “violence begets violence” position.

The phrase “cycle of violence” describes what takes place when parental violence is witnessed by the children and then repeated in the children’s peer relationships, and, when those children grow up, in their own families. There is an increasing need for early intervention to prevent relationship violence and to help break the cycle of violence in families.

If family violence has been identified in a trainee’s background, or is identified by the family while a trainee is in our program, the trainee will be required to attend a Family Violence Prevention Program.       

Support Service

 
In an effort to provide the emotional support that our trainees might need, counselors are available to our trainees during the normal business hours of the counselor  A trainee may set up an appointment for additional counseling not a part of their planned counseling. In any case, counseling sessions are mandatory at least once every other week.  Emergency appointments may also be scheduled for counseling visits by contacting the program director or the operations manager. We counsel the families of our men on an as-needed and as-requested basis. We believe that a spiritually based recovery program will be the success for any person wishing to recover from addiction.  We believe that walking the walk and talking the talk will enable our trainees to learn to walk a successful path. We will use the Wellbriety 12 Step Program, which is based on Amerian Indian culture and spirituality, as the model for our recovery program.

Animal Therapy 

An American Indian resource library is available. In addition to written materials, the staff of IN A GOOD WAY is knowledgable about American Indians websites and can provide help in researching topics and information that contribute to increased cultural pride and knowledge.

 

Sewing Seeds: Preserving Our Heritage

The dinner table will be a place where our trainees can learn to tell stories, share cultures and engage in a Talking Circle. Our elder exchange teaches and preserves our culture.  It enables elders in the Amerian Indian community to tell their memory-stories and get their language recorded and written for posterity. When the last person speaking an Indian language dies, the language dies.  Our vision is to use computer programming skills as well as elders who speak a language to help preserve and teach American Indian language to anyone interested.  We welcome any volunteer who would like to work on this project.  We are interested in joining with any ongoing like projects.We invite tribal elders, tribal members, and those persons interested and experienced in all Amerian Indian cultures to join us in teaching and recording our traditions and cultures. We welcome your attendance at religious ceremonies, drum circles, sweats and pow wows.It is so important to the vitality and integrity of our Nations that, as Amerian Indians, we know, respect, and appreciate our culture and who we are. We also need to learn to stand up for ourselves and our culture. Many of our people have not had an opportunity to live a traditional life.   Many of us have heard from our oft-oppressed Elders that we should not seek out our heritage and history. We want to teach our native traditions, which could include everything from foods to games to languages.   In short, we will encourage the ‘Amerian Indian’ growth of all participants.

Budgeting and Money Management

Each trainee establishes his budget as part of his Indidvual Training Plan.  It is mandatory to start a savings account.  Classes in money management and budgeting, savings plans, check writing, and bank account resolution are mandatory and will be taught by personal from a local bank and IAGW staff.  Other topics offered are:  reading andunderstanding utility bills and how to get the best rates; comparison shopping; the pluses and minuses of credit cards; and how to rebuild or establish a good credit rating (and why you should!)

Community Service

Our apprentices are encouraged to provide needed services to all elders and needy in our community. These services are on a volunteer basis by our trainees, and are free to those trainees of our community in need. We welcome referrals from agencies. Services might include:  yard work; light painting; light carpentry, etc.