About Us.htm

"Working to Build A Better Community"

"The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just."
~ Abraham Lincoln

CORI LEGISLATION

CORI &
EX-OFFENDERS

EX-OFFENDER HOUSING DISCRIMINATION

HOW YOU CAN HELP

ABOUT US
▼ STANLEY JONES / ▼ HAYWOOD FENNELL, SR. / ▼ OUR BOARD MEMBERS / ▼ OUR SUPPORTERS

STANLEY JONES
Stanley Jones departed this life in February 1998. His life was filled with challenges that would serve to give birth to a vision of inclusion for all those that had been imprisoned and suffered under the yoke of "once a criminal, always a criminal" syndrome.

Stan, as he was often called by those that knew and loved him, spent a large part of his life struggling to change his life from a taker to become a giver. Many years were spent incarcerated, caught up in a lifestyle that always resulted in his living behind the walls of a prison or a jail.

During his final incarceration, Stan began to really examine his situation and that of his comrades and the question was, "What do I do when I am released back into the community?" He began to speak with some of his fellow inmates and seeds for a new direction for his life were "planted."

Stanley Jones was physically, a short man, but big in spirit with a determination to make a difference. He was not afraid to talk about his past and encouraged others to remember their pasts and to use it like a barometer to measure future movement in society. He fought for prisoner's rights, and he helped the families of the incarcerated whenever he could.

Stan founded Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, a non-profit program that was physically located in the community, but he went back into various jails and prisons with his message of hope, using himself as an example of what can happen when a person changes his/her thinking. The program was focused on helping those returning from incarceration to make the transitions back into the community through referrals for employment, housing, healthcare, and support group meetings. He helped many people and many never returned to the lifestyle that sent them to jail or prison as a direct result of meeting and working with Stan.

Through his work, Stanley Jones became an archetype of what a prisoner's rights advocate is. He encouraged people to take responsibility for their past and do something to help themselves. He encouraged self-belief. He became a diabetic, but before he lost his sight, he taught many how to see, before his legs were amputated, he taught many how to walk in dignity.

Following his death and out of the spirit of his dedication and commitment, the Stanley Jones Clean Slate Project began in 1998. It was named to honor the work of this man, and to continue working with a broad and diverse group of people to plan and develop educational strategies that bring awareness that people make mistakes, pay for their mistakes, and should be allowed to rebuild their lives and become a community resource.

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HAYWOOD FENNELL, SR.
Haywood Fennell, Sr. was born in New York City, and subsequently attended public school in Wilmington, N.C. He is a Vietnam Era veteran who served nearly six years in the U.S. Army as a clerk, photographer, and as an information specialist. Haywood, who is currently a Boston, MA resident, studied Urban Planning at Boston University, and Urban Issues at the University of Massachusetts Boston College of Public and Community Service.

Founder and president Haywood Fennell, Sr.

While living in the Boston area, Mr. Fennell has worked tirelessly to serve as an asset to his community, for which he has recently received the 2003 prestigious Boston Neighborhood Fellow’s Award. He is the Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Tri-Ad Veterans League, Inc., a veterans’ rights advocacy group, which focuses primarily on those who have been incarcerated and HIV/AIDS patients. The members of this organization use their military experiences to assist the community’s cultural enrichment development. Mr. Fennell also serves on the Board of Directors of the Stanley Jones Clean Slate Project, which is an ex-offender think-tank, whose purpose is to educate and empower those individuals who are marginalized by the Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) laws. He is also the Boston Editor for “Unity First,” a Springfield, MA, based diverse community newspaper. Haywood sits on the Advisory Board of the William Monroe Trotter Institute at UMass Boston; is a lecturer on the Harlem Renaissance Era’s importance in American history; and has served as a member of the Judging Committee for the “Reflection in Action: Building Healthy Communities,” which is sponsored by Harvard Medical School, Office for Diversity and Community Partnership. He has been a presenter for the Community Enrichment Fellows 2004, and a member of the Roxbury Community College Community Advisory Group.

Haywood Fennell, Sr. has written and is presently working to produce the fifth annual performance of the cultural/educational play, “Harlem Renaissance Revisited with a Boston Flavor;” which is a play about American history and focuses on the Harlem Renaissance Era. Some of the central artists of this culturally significant time period of the 1920s, ban together to face and overcome some of the racial barriers that denied them the opportunities to pursue their Art. The play involves a cast of intergenerational volunteers who have come together to perform; singing and dancing their way into hearts of the audiences. Haywood later wrote and produced “From Gospel to Hip-Hop and All in Between,” a musical lineage production that was first performed in January 2001, on the celebrated stage of the Berklee Performance Center in Boston. This play, which depicts the history and evolution of African-American music, received a community service grant from the Office of the President, Office of Community and Government Affairs. Haywood accredits the Berklee College of Music and City Year for advising and assisting him in his productions.

Haywood Fennell, Sr.’s most recent accomplishment is the receipt of copyright protection for his book, “Coota and the Magic Quilt.” It is the story of a young boy from Roxbury, MA, which is a neighborhood in Boston. The young boy wants to be a gangsta rap star, but has two major encounters that help him to become a better person. In addition to all of his various accomplishments, visions, and activism, Haywood is also a freelance photographer. Boston celebrates Haywood Fennell, Sr. as a champion for their community.

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OUR BOARD MEMBERS

Haywood Fennell Sr., President

Loren E. Roberts, Clerk

Heather E. Parsons, Executive Secretary & Acting Treasurer

Milton Jones, Fellow

Robyn McGrory, Fellow

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OUR SUPPORTERS

Criminal Justice Policy Coalition

ABCD, Inc.

STRIVE, Inc.

FIRST, Inc.

MA Black Alcoholic & Addiction Committee