Commissioner : Gregory C. Dozier

Director of Public Affairs : Joan Heath

Lee Evidence Based Prison hosts joint graduation

FORSYTH, Ga. – On June 16, Lee Evidence Based Prison hosted their inaugural Evidence Based Program graduation at the facility located in Leesburg, Ga. Along with the 30 individuals who successfully completed the program, 19 offenders earned their GED, and 30 completed the Basic Welding program. Participant Kenneth Geiger not only completed the program and received his GED, but he also received his parole papers to be released on June 19.

“We are proud of the first 30 men to graduate from the evidence-based program at Lee Evidence Based Prison,” said Commissioner Dozier. “We hope that the training they have received has changed their mindset and shown them they have the ability to be productive, law abiding citizens.”

The evidence-based program started in June of 2015.  The program is a two-year, four-phase program that encourages offenders to change the way they think, so that they can change their behavior and return to society as productive citizens. 

The Basic Welding program provides certificates in welding through Albany Technical College and runs anywhere from 15 to 22 weeks.

The GED program provides educational services catered to offenders who did not complete their high school education. Students must pass tests in four basic subject areas to acquire their GED: Mathematics, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies.

During the GED portion of the ceremony, the class valedictorian was given the opportunity to select one security staff and one non-security staff member that he felt helped him the most in obtaining his GED. The graduate selected GED teacher Steffanie Edwards as his non-security choice stating that, "she really cares about teaching and makes sure you understand the work. She takes her time and goes the extra mile when she has to." He selected Officer Annie Batten as his security choice stating that, "Officer Batten made sure I went to class, even when I didn't feel like it.  She kept telling me that I would need my education when I got released." 

Both staff members were presented with the Agency’s Golden Apple Award.

The GDC has one of the largest prison systems in the U.S. and is responsible for supervising nearly 52,000 state prisoners. It is the largest law enforcement agency in the state with approximately 10,500 employees.

For more information on the GDC call 478-992-5248 or visit https://gdc.georgia.gov.