A new Ethical Encounters program connects themes in the University’s annual Royal Read with an interactive local experience for first-year students as part of the First-Year Seminar program. This year, students read the book “Cherished Belonging,” by Rev. Greg Boyle, S.J., founder of Homeboy Industries, the largest gang rehabilitation and reentry program in the world. The Ethical Encounters events brought together students and faculty in first-year seminar courses with Cypress House at St. Luke’s, a bakery job reentry program modeled after Homeboy Industries. The students had heard Fr. Boyle and two of his colleagues, Junior and George, speak on campus in September.
At two events held in October and November, students visited St. Luke’s Church in downtown Scranton and had the opportunity to hear from local individuals who had been formerly incarcerated, sharing their stories of reentry in the Scranton area. They also learned about the Cypress House program from St. Luke’s Church pastor, Rev.Tyler Parry.
The panel was followed by a Q&A and small-group-facilitated table discussions with students making connections between the book’s themes and the panel stories. They discussed what it means to dismantle barriers of exclusion, including such issues as securing a job post-prison, experiencing stigma and other biases toward those who have been incarcerated. They also reflected on what it means to accompany and learn from those marginalized in our society, and ways we can all contribute to fostering greater belonging on our campus, community and beyond.
This year’s Ethical Encounters is a collaboration between the University’s First Year Seminar program and Office of Community Relations together with community partner Cypress House at St. Luke’s Church.
The public can learn more about Cypress House, a member of the Global Homeboy Network, at their upcoming Open House on Friday, December 5. Two University of Scranton faculty members, Dr. Michael Jenkins and Dr. Ashley Stampone, serve on their Board of Directors. Visitors will have the opportunity to tour their newly renovated kitchen, meet local residents who have experienced incarceration, enjoy artwork and poetry created by these individuals, participate in basket raffles, and savor refreshments. To learn more, visit https://cypresshouse.org/ .