SPEAKERS
Dr. Breea Willingham
Dr. Breea Willingham is an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at the State University of New York at Plattsburgh. Her teaching and research areas include women in the criminal justice system, Black women’s prison writing, higher education in prison, the impact of incarceration on families, and race and crime in the media. Prior to beginning her academic career in 2005, Dr. Willingham worked as a newspaper reporter covering crime, murder trials, and school board meetings for 10 years in the Carolinas and Upstate New York. She also taught journalism at St. Bonaventure University, sociology and criminal justice at the State University of New York at Oneonta and earned her Ph.D. in American Studies from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 2014.
As an interdisciplinary scholar, Dr. Willingham’s research examines the intersections of race, gender, and the criminal justice system. She is particularly interested in examining women’s pathways to incarceration, their experiences in and after prison, and giving these women a platform to tell their stories. Dr. Willingham’s research also focuses on the societal ramifications of mass incarceration, especially its impact on families. Influenced by her experiences as a sister and aunt of two men serving life sentences, Dr. Willingham’s research goes beyond a critique of the institution of prison to include the narratives of the people marginalized by mass incarceration. Dr. Willingham has presented her research at academic conferences nationally and internationally, given lectures at universities in the United States and the United Kingdom, and led workshops in women’s and men’s prisons. Her work on incarcerated fathers and their children, Black women’s prison writing, teaching in women’s prisons, and Black women and police violence has been published in academic journals and edited collections. In addition to her teaching and research duties, Dr. Willingham is the subject matter expert and project coordinator on a Mellon grant funded partnership between the State University of New York, Rockefeller Institute for Government, and City University of New York exploring ways to increase higher education opportunities for incarcerated/formerly incarcerated people in New York State. Dr. Willingham is also writing a book about higher education in women’s prisons. The book – tentatively titled What Good Would a College Degree Do for These Women? – is due to be released next year. Her anthology titled Punishment and Society – based on her course of the same name – will be available nationwide in August 2019. |
Opening Speaker
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Lettisha Boyd
Lettisha Boyd is the Associate Director of Technical Assistance for College & Community Fellowships national technical assistance program called THRIVE. Previously, she was the Academic Counselor at CCF for four years where she supported students through their application and enrollment process, while building strong relationships with various college faculty and staff throughout the New York Metropolitan area. Her national presence has afforded her the opportunity to work with various agencies, and companies looking to support, and hire criminal justice involved people. Her passion for social and criminal justice was fueled by the routine denials of discretionary release to people convicted of first-time violent crimes by the New York State Parole Board. Lettisha is known for her business networking skills; she is a quasi-credit/debt repair counselor and a trained evidenced-based practitioner, holds a B.A. from CUNY School of Professional Studies in Communications and Culture, as well as certifications in Human Relations, Paralegal Studies, and Business Management.
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Dr. Erin S. Corbett
Erin S. Corbett, EdD is a senior research analyst at the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP). Her research interests include higher education in prison as well as higher education policy for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals.
Corbett has spent almost two decades in education access in a number of roles. With experience in independent school admission, enrichment programs, and postsecondary financial aid, her commitment to expanding postsecondary opportunities for all populations has served as the foundation of her professional endeavors. While pursuing her doctorate, Corbett launched a nonprofit that provides not-for-credit, postsecondary level courses in two correctional facilities in Connecticut. In addition to the classes she taught there, she has also taught in two correctional facilities in Rhode Island. Corbett holds a B.A. in Psychology and Education from SwarthmoreCollege. She earned her MBA from Post University (CT) and her doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania, where her dissertation examined the relationship between educational attainment level and post-release employment outcomes for Connecticut ex-offenders. |
Freda King
It took over twenty years for Freda to realize her potential and ability to overcome all odds, which included a 20 year addiction, living a criminal lifestyle, severe trauma and a lack of education. Freda worked eleven and ½ years in the Governor’s Office under Governor Bush and Governor Crist. Currently, Freda is a Program Supervisor for the DISC Village- L.I.F.T. Program who partners with the Leon County Detention Facility, which is a re-entry program and she supervises a substance education class. Additionally, Freda is an Adjunct Professor at Tallahassee Community College; she is a Certified Addiction Professional and has a Master’s Degree from the Florida State University-Criminal Justice Studies program. Freda is a 2017 JustLeadershipUSA Leading with Conviction fellow. Freda is a motivational speaker who shares her journey by speaking to men and women’s prisons, criminal justice and training conferences for adults and youth throughout the State of Florida. Freda encourages others to make positive changes in their lives, and she is giving hope to people who want to pursue their dreams of stability, education and life of hope, despite a history of mistakes or bad choices.
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Dr. Lucretia Murphy
Lucretia Murphy, PhD, is a senior director at JFF, helping low-skilled adults advance to family-supporting careers while enabling employers to build and sustain a productive workforce. Lucretia's work focuses on place-based initiatives, developing integrated education and workforce development pathways that enable young people and adults to earn credentials that are in high demand in their local economy. This work also includes addressing structural barriers to success for individuals of low-income and of color.
Prior to working for JFF, Lucretia was the executive director of the See Forever Foundation and Maya Angelou Schools. As executive director, she oversaw the operations of three schools—a middle school, high school, and school for young adults aged 16–24—that served young people either at risk of dropping out or who have already dropped out of school. In this role, Lucretia also served on policy and program committees with district agencies to develop policies to support the success of opportunity youth in Washington, DC. Prior to serving as executive director, Lucretia worked for JFF, advancing community efforts to improve outcomes for opportunity youth. She also did research and programming for the Kellogg Forum for Higher Education for the Public Good at the University of Michigan. Lucretia has a doctorate in higher education policy from the University of Michigan, a law degree from the University of Texas–Austin, and a bachelor's degree in international politics, law, and organization from Georgetown University. |
Emerald Morrow
I prepared for this career at Northwestern University, where I earned both my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism. It was there I realized how my diverse set of life experiences coupled with my passion for telling the stories of overlooked issues and underserved people would make for a successful career in this field.
Before coming to Tampa, I wrote for a few magazines, and worked as a reporter for the CBS affiliate in Lansing, Michigan, where I broke stories that led to changes in state law. I’ve also covered the DNC, GRAMMYs, Oscars, New York Fashion Week and the 100th Rose Bowl. My work has earned multiple awards, including an EMMY for best continuing coverage. I’ve also been recognized by the Associated Press in both Michigan and Florida, Florida’s chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and the Michigan Association of Broadcasters. |
Moderator
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Syrita Steib-MartinSyrita Steib-Martin is a nationally certified and licensed Clinical Laboratory Scientist. She has an unrelenting passion to help women successfully reenter into society after incarceration. At the age of 19, she was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison. After serving 110 months, she earned her B.S. from LSUHSC in New Orleans. Syrita is the founder and Executive Director of Operation Restoration (OR). Syrita successfully drafted and passed Louisiana Act 276 which became law on August 1, 2017. This law prohibits public post-secondary institutions in Louisiana from asking questions relating to criminal history for purposes of admissions, making Louisiana the first to pass this type of legislation. She is working on the national Dignity for incarcerated women campaign after passing the legislation in Louisiana and regularly speaks at conferences across the nation about the experiences of incarcerated women. A panelist on the Empowerment stage at Essence Festival, she was on Mayor Cantrell’s transition team in 2018, was appointed to the JRI oversight council for the state of Louisiana, and chairs the Louisiana Task Force on Women’s Incarceration.
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Topeka K. Sam
Topeka K. Sam is the Founder and Executive Director of The Ladies of Hope Ministries – The LOHM – whose mission is to help disenfranchised and marginalized women and girls transition back into society through resources and access to high-quality education, entrepreneurship, spiritual empowerment, advocacy and housing. She is also the co-founder of HOPE HOUSE NYC – a safe housing space for women and girls. Topeka serves on the board of directors for Grassroots Leadership and is now the first formerly incarcerated person on the board of The Marshall Project. She is a Beyond the Bars 2015 Fellow and a 2016 Justice-In-Education Scholar both from Columbia University, a 2017 Soros Justice Advocacy Fellow working on Probation and Parole Accountability, a 2018 Unlocked Futures Inaugural Cohort Member, 2018 Opportunity Agenda Communications Institute Fellow, Director of #Dignity Campaign for #cut50, Host of “The Topeka K. Sam Show” on SiriusXM UrbanView Channel 126 Sundays 9am est. and founding member of The National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls.
Topeka has been featured in Vogue, SalonTV, Vice, New York Times. She has been featured in Glamour Magazine and Black Enterprise for being “The Black Woman behind the video that led to the Trump Clemency of Alice Johnson.” She has spoken at the 2018 United States of the Woman Conference, 2018 Women in the World Conference, 2018 White House Prison Reform Summit and is a TedxMidAtlantic Superheros Presenter. She has worked and continues to work selflessly and relentlessly in her fight for the decriminalization and decarceration of women and girls. Topeka has accomplished this and more since her release from Federal Prison May 2015. |
Keynote Speaker
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