Correctional facility inmates graduate business program

2 dozen complete course taught by counselors from the Small Business Development Center

Staten Island Advance - June 2, 2005

 Jaffar Abbas' business plan is to cater to the needs of the nation's prison population.

"I'd sell things like boots, or these sneakers -- a real bargain at only $29," Abbas said pointing to his purple and white sneakers by Michael Jordan. After 23 years in prison, "I've gotten to know what everybody needs," said Abbas, who hopes to be paroled in 2007.

Abbas was among nearly two dozen inmates attending their graduation ceremony yesterday in the Arthur Kill Correctional Facility, Charleston. They had successfully completed a nine-month business course at the facility, taught by counselors from the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), based at the College of Staten Island.

Patrick Jabbour's business plan for a vehicle registration service was also directly inspired by his prison term. Jabbour is among 47 inmates working the phone lines at the state Department of Motor Vehicles' call-center branch, based at Arthur Kill.

All their problems that he found answers to inspired his plan "to register people's boats, cars, trailers -- so that people don't have to take off from work and lose a day's pay, or even two days if the problem can't be immediately resolved," Jabbour said.

HOME-BASED ENTERPRISE

He would base his business out of his home area of Seldon, L. I., after he completes his three and a half year term next year (for attempted burglary), Jabbour said. "I really want to do this for my daughter, Amanda."

Twenty four graduates completed the course, the largest class at Arthur Kill since the SBDC began the program five years ago, said Martin Schwartz, SBDC director. Assisting him were SBDC business advisers John Blohm and Robert Stein.

The program began five years ago to serve incarcerated veterans, and was later expanded to include a number of nonveterans. To date, the number of inmates served is over 145, Schwartz said.

Inmates' superior performance over the past five years has inspired "hope that we can get more programs for you," said Ed Adler, deputy superintendent for programs at Arthur Kill. Plans are under way to start a graduate equivalency diploma (GED) program. "And we would love to have a college program, but we would need to get a private college to come in, or a sponsor (to fund it)," Adler said.

At yesterday's event, 19 inmates received certificates for completing the Small Business Management Certificate Program, and five received certificates for completing the advanced program, Schwartz said of the training sessions that began last October. Meetings were generally every other week, but at least once a month.

BUSINESS PLANS

Inmates were instructed as a group, then individually. Each inmate was given a business-plan outline and then taught how to develop one. The advisers met with each participant individually and critiqued the section that had been assigned, and then the inmates made corrections accordingly.

At the end of the program, each participant had a professionally developed business plan that included starting a real estate brokerage, sign-language video service, recording studio, sports apparel sales firm, chicken and ribs eatery, construction and home remodeling.

Schwartz cited Michael Brown's idea for an art reproductions business as "the best business plan."

"I'm an artist for over 25 years," said Brown, having done oil and acrylic paintings, and colored pencil drawings of street scenes in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, where he grew up, and of Prospect Park and Coney Island where he often visited.

Brown plans to market print reproductions of his own work, advertising on the Internet, after getting out of prison, "I hope in early 2007," he said.

The SBDC at CSI is part of the state's 23 regional not-for-profit SBDCs, which offer free business counseling in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration, State University of New York and City University of New York.
 

By Carolyn Rushefsky
Reprinted here with permission from the