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| Beauty behind bars |
| By Sarah Etter, News Reporter |
| Published: 01/01/2007 |
Behind the walls of California's Valley State Prison for Women, officers and offenders line up at a door. Officers impatiently check their watches, while female inmates chat about their day. Suddenly, the door swings open and a name is called.
“Lisa!” an inmate chirpily says. “Come on in!” An officer stands up, smiles and then makes her way into the next room where she selects a nail polish color and settles in for a manicure. Welcome to the prison salon. Haircuts, pedicures and facials might not seem like typical prison procedure, but beauty behind bars is taking on a whole new meaning with the help of California's vocational cosmetology program. “Cosmetology is something the ladies are very passionate about” says Lieutenant Tim Scott, program manager at VSPW. “The women very rarely miss their cosmetology classes, and this program has the longest waiting list at our facility.” The program was originally established in 1995, as part of a prison reform movement focused on reducing female recidivism. The VSPW researched local job markets and analyzed the careers that would help inmates after release. Cosmetology came out on top and CDCR began laying the groundwork for the program, which is offered at VSPW and the Central California Women's Facility. Last month, the program received renewed attention after state legislators repealed a law that barred female offenders from taking the State Board of Barbering and Cosmetology exam. “Now that the law has been changed, we have a chance to parole these women with cosmetology licenses,” Scott explains. “So far, we have had four women graduate from the program and pass the exam in the past month. We're really impressed with the results we're seeing, and many of these women cannot wait to take the exam.” Program participants are eligible to take the exam after completing 1,600 hours of cosmetic training. Classroom education and hands-on practice benefit the students, as well as those offenders and officers who volunteer to take advantage of free salon services. “Our staff really appreciates this program,” Scott says with a laugh. “The female officers love that they can get a manicure on their break. It's really been a hit.” But beautification is adjusted behind bars. Drastic hair color changes are banned for security purposes and any inmate that receives a new, fashionable haircut must have their ID photograph updated to reflect the change. Vocational officers also routinely patrol the salon to ensure that appearances are not severely altered. “Security is always at the forefront of these programs,” explains Scott. “We inventory the chemicals and tools at the salon rigorously. We check on the supplies once every morning and once before closing every night.” Many of the cosmetologists-in-training say they have been interested in their personal appearance since they were young, which has made the program a natural hit. After all, who doesn't like to look good? |
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