Coach Bill / Dad, Entrepreneur Special Educator, American Political Scientist, Writer, Musician.

updated 9:48 am 4/7/17 Yesterday I entered a level four maximum security jail. I had a volunteer interview with the chaplain there. I saw no inmates and only entered into the administrative section of the jail to have a conversation with the chaplain on my social enterprise proposal. We discussed the viability of a key component of my proposal, that of physically revitalizing the Bridgeport, Ct. playgrounds after a collaborative grant search and acquisition of funds to purchase new equipment, along with any possible training needed for the first round of inmates I would theoretically be working with. The idea is to have the men give back to the community and to themselves by beautifying the communal environment of the city and therein, through their work, that they do ‘soul work’ in the process of the physical exertion and mission of the endeavor. To this the chaplain let me down gently, explaining that though my proposal was a good one, given the security level of the jai...

March 3, 2017 Coach Bill Social Entrepreneur & Special Educator Life Skills Corp. CoachBill.US Chaplain of Bridgeport Correctional Center, Bridgeport, Ct. Re: Social Entrepreneurial-Mentoring Proposal to the Bridgeport Correctional Center Dear Chaplain, I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to propose a two-step program for the inmates at your correctional center. My goal is multi-pronged and involves lowering recidivism rates of male citizens through bringing awareness and vision of how inmates can go about self-empowering their position in the community. My program would have two phases and would require the establishment and deepening of relationships between the inmates so that I can best understand them on an individual level, step into their shoes, and together, plot out a way forward for them. ‘Real-world’ life skills that are often not recognized, such as grit, honesty, humility and leadership can be identified and rein...

Part 1:  A democracy is as strong as we exercise it or weak as we let it slide. It is not static, but waxes and wanes according to our practice of it. Just like a muscle. I violated a mutual restraining order by bringing flowers to my ex-wives job. I was sending her a marshall to order her to court to deal with sharing the children. I never see them. They are young. I broke the law by bringing the flowers. She reported me and I was arrested in the courthouse. God bless her and God bless the great state of Connecticut. I harbor no ill will. This post is not aimed at bringing a critical eye to what is wrong with our criminal justice system, but about how we can make it better. Genuine hope and enthusiasm are central to an understanding and application of the best instructional methods and strategies to use when teaching or coaching. It is an energy that is expressed by one and picked up on by another and serves as a bridge allowing for teaching and learning to remai...