Reaching Out From Within (ROFW) sponsors 19 weekly groups in each prison in the state of Kansas, including the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth. In 2017, ROFW expanded to North Carolina through a generous gift from the Bob Barker Foundation. Since then the program has expanded to four prisons in the state of North Carolina. ROFW is for incarcerated men and women who seek to live a non-violent way of life by learning life skills that will help them both inside the walls and as returning citizens into our communities. Members learn about Anger, Abuse, Respect, Prison Mentality, Communication, Listening and other subjects. Our program incorporates cognitive thinking best practices and moral and ethical formation. Members teach themselves and each other using a unique curriculum, called the Blue Book, that has been developed by inmates and volunteers. The 19-unit, 400-page Blue Book uses the Socratic method by presenting information and then posing questions that stimulate intense discussion. In the process, ROFW members question long-held beliefs, evaluate other value systems, and consider alternate behaviors to achieve life goals. As one ROFW member describes it: "The program instills in us all the power to take that first step of a thousand miles as a universal, united brotherhood from all walks of life, no matter what your crime, time, religion or race. It puts each of us on one accord, to CHANGE." In 2011 Reaching Out From Within participated with the Kansas Department of Corrections in the development of the Mentoring4Success program. ROFW is a lead mentoring organization within the Mentoring4Success program. ROFW mentors work one-on-one or in small groups with those on the inside during their last year of incarceration and through their first months as returning citizens.Members teach themselves and each other using a unique curriculum, called the Blue Book, that has been developed by inmates and volunteers. ROFW mentors work one-on-one or in small groups with offenders during their last year of incarceration and through their first months following release.
