The December 2023 program cohort commemorated their experience with a special ceremony featuring remarks from Rep. Donna Bullock, Hon. Scott Reid, and more.
December 22, 2023
Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site (Eastern State) celebrated the graduation of its third LEAD (Lived Experience Activating Dialogue) Fellowship cohort in a ceremony at the Federal Courthouse this week. The LEAD Fellowship is a holistic reentry initiative at Eastern State that gives people coming home from prison the tools and support they need to transform their lives, their communities, and the world. At the ceremony, Fellows were recognized for their hard work and dedication throughout the program and presented with graduation awards.
“Our LEAD Fellows are a shining example of the success that can be achieved when opportunities are given. They are worked intentionally, thoughtfully, and diligently throughout their time with us and made a meaningful impact on our organization,” said Dr. Kerry Sautner, President and CEO, Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site. “I look forward to seeing the difference they will each continue to make in their communities as they look ahead to their next chapters.”
Every LEAD Fellow receives paid, hands-on job training to establish a pathway to meaningful, living-wage career opportunities in the museum field or other fields of interest. LEAD Fellows are also provided access to vital resources like housing support, financial education, and career services. This most recent cohort participated in speaking engagements with high school and college students, hosted family-focused events including a fall festival and holiday toy drive, and traveled to meet industry experts at regional museums to learn about inclusive museum practices.
“The LEAD Fellowship program is an important component of our work to interpret the legacy of American criminal justice reform,” said Lauren Zalut, Director of Education and Tour Programs, Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site. “LEAD Fellows are able to share their unique perspectives and engage in meaningful conversations around mass incarceration using their own lived experience. It has been inspiring to watch this cohort grow and learn together.”
The LEAD Fellowship graduation ceremony was presided over by the Honorable Scott Reid. Judge Reid has been a strong advocate for the structured reentry support and community bridge-building that the program provides. During the graduation, an Award of Recognition was presented to State Representative Donna Bullock for her steadfast support of the program and of Eastern State’s efforts to move visitors to engage in dialogue and deepen the national conversation about criminal justice.
About the LEAD Fellowship:
The LEAD (Lived Experience Activating Dialogue) Fellowship is a holistic reentry initiative at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site that gives people coming home from prison the tools and support they need to transform their lives, their communities, and the world.
Eastern State Penitentiary invites recently incarcerated people to join a true fellowship of their peers, working together to realize their full potential and reacclimate to life outside prison walls — mind, body, and soul. Every LEAD Fellow is paid for their participation and receives hands-on job training, establishing a pathway to meaningful, sustainable career opportunities in the museum field or other fields of interest. LEAD Fellows are also provided access to vital resources like housing support, financial education, and career services.
In addition to providing structured reentry support, the LEAD Fellowship is a bridge-building program that has a positive impact both on-site at Eastern State Penitentiary and in the community beyond. LEAD Fellows share their unique perspectives as formerly incarcerated people with museum visitors, unraveling stereotypes about people who have been incarcerated and augmenting the conversations about the criminal justice system happening at Eastern State every day. LEAD Fellows also engage community members beyond the walls of ESP in discussions about the impact of mass incarceration and their own lived experiences.
The LEAD Fellowship is a flagship program of Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site. An active prison from 1829 through 1971, Eastern State is now a museum that interprets, and encourages dialogue about, the legacy of criminal justice reform in America.
About Eastern State Penitentiary:
Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site interprets the legacy of American criminal justice reform, from the nation’s founding through to the present day, within the long-abandoned cellblocks of the nation’s most historic prison.
Eastern State Penitentiary was once the most famous and expensive prison in the world, but stands today in ruin, a haunting world of crumbling cellblocks and empty guard towers. Known for its grand architecture and strict discipline, this was the world's first true "penitentiary," a prison designed to inspire penitence, or true regret, in the hearts of prisoners. Its vaulted, sky-lit cells held approximately 80,000 men and women during its 142 years of operation, including bank robber "Slick Willie" Sutton and “Scarface” Al Capone.
Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site is open for tours year-round. Admission includes “The Voices of Eastern State" Audio Tour, narrated by actor Steve Buscemi; award-winning exhibits; and a critically acclaimed series of artist installations.
In recent years, Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site has been awarded the prestigious Excellence in Exhibitions award by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the nation’s highest award in exhibition development and design, for its exhibit Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration, as well as the Institutional Award for Special Achievement from the Pennsylvania Federation of Museums and the Trustee Emeritus Award for Stewardship from the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The LEAD Fellowship, formerly called the Returning Citizens Tour Guide Project, has won the EdCom Award for Innovation in Museum Education by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) and has been featured internationally by such networks as the BBC and others.
For more information, visit www.EasternState.org and follow Eastern State Penitentiary on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and Tik Tok
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