Walla Walla Valley Chamber of Commerce: September 2023
Linda Talks with The Chamber
K-LOVE Radio Interview: Airdate July 23, 2023
K-LOVE Talks with STAR Executive Director, Linda Scott
NonStop LOCAL News: March 7, 2023, Max Hughes Reporter
Shelley Winner, International Keynote, Restorative Justice, Diversity & Inclusion Speaker
Columbia REA Announces 2022 MPT Grant Winner
STAR Project Accepts $10,000 from Columbia REA
Berkeley Underground Scholars, March 2019
A Guide for Communicating About People Involved in the Carceral System
Community Q&A:
Warren Waller combines passion for teaching with music to transform lives
Hannah McIntyre, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
Mar 7, 2024
Warren Waller has found a way to balance his passion for teaching others and his love of sharing music through a job at the Washington State Penitentiary.
Although he is not originally from Walla Walla or even the state of Washington, he said he has found a home in the community. Born and raised in New England, North Dakota, Waller said he is no stranger to small towns.
“I was a city kid in a farming community,” he said. “You don’t really stay around.”
Waller, who lived outside Portland, decided he needed a change of pace. Not quite wanting to live in a small town dominated by wheat fields and cows, he settled on Walla Walla.
Waller took a teaching job at Washington State Penitentiary about two summers ago, and he said he has found a passion for helping others realize their potential through teaching both math and music.
What has been the most impactful aspect of the work you do?
My wife, Linda Scott, is the executive director of the STAR Project. Before that, she taught out at the penitentiary. She would tell me these incredible stories about the transformation that some of these men would go through while she was teaching them.
I wanted to be a part of that. I would ask myself, what do you you want to do with your life? The answer definitely was not working at a grocery store. I wanted to do something transformative for others.
When I work with my students, I am there to help them transform their lives so they can come out and be good citizens. I want these guys to be neighbors at the end. The other side of this recidivism. I don’t want harm to come to anyone. We want the best people coming back into society.
For me, it’s mission-driven, to inspire these guys to get educated. To see some of my students land roles of responsibility is so inspiring to me.
What are some of the challenges you face as a teacher at WSP?
For me, I’m blessed enough that the guys who come into my classes want to be there. They’ve kind of already turned the corner and want that education. There are certain mandates that do get in the way for some students like getting a high school diploma. Some of those students aren’t always directed to do things in their best interest.
The lines of communication while working inside with the regular Community College can be challenging as well. We do a lot of our own admin, and everything is very paper-driven because access to the internet is pretty limited.
I wish we had more offerings for students. We have good programs for digital design, HVAC, and welding. I just wish there would be more opportunities for folks to try something different. I see that coming down the road, but it looks like we might be playing the long game.
How do you incorporate music into your work?
I integrate music theory into my math. Some of the guys caught wind of me and now we get together and play as a band. If someone wants to learn how to play a solo in the various pentatonic scale, I dig that information up for them.
A lot of the guys have original stuff that they have come up with on their own, which is really cool. We kind of play to whatever event (in the penitentiary) we are attending. I remember one time, we were playing at an event, and the drummer looked at me and said, “I never thought that I would be able to do anything like this after I took my fall.” Moments like that really stand out in my memory.
The days when we play music together brings a sense of normalcy and humanity to the space. Music plays a pretty role in my life; my time is more dedicated to being in the penitentiary.
I believe music can positively impact people.
How are you working to remove the stigma that follows incarcerated individuals?
I spend a lot of time talking about it with folks I’m around. I mention the different inspiring aspects that they go through, and I talk about the people who rise to the occasion.
There are lots of people who want to do better things. I see that a lot of these people when they leave, want to continue to advocate for this population.
If an individual comes to me and is inspired to learn and move on, I’m inspired to take them forward. I will advocate for them in their educational journey throughout that place.
Walla Walla Valley Chamber of Commerce bestows 2023 business awards
Hannah McIntyre, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
Jan 7, 2024
Eighteen months ago, the STAR Project was preparing to close its doors and cease the services it provides to recently released incarcerated individuals and their families.
Now, the organization has been named Nonprofit Organization of the Year by the Walla Walla Valley Chamber of Commerce. Presented by Hayden Homes, the award recognizes successful and impactful philanthropic efforts that bring significant benefit to the Walla Walla Valley.
Linda Scott, executive director of the STAR Project, said receiving the award has been validating, especially when reflecting on how much work went into revamping the program.
“When I came to the STAR Project in May of 2022, it was just a shell of an organization,” she said. “It’s emotional to see how far we’ve come. The support from the community has been incredible.”
Founded in 2004, the Successful Transition and Re-entry, or STAR, Project is the only reentry organization serving Southeast Washington. The nonprofit works to help people released from prison return to communities in Walla Walla and Columbia counties.
Essentially, the organization helps to support people with transitional housing, stable employment, mental health support and family reunification activities and has helped connect them to community and state resources.
The organization is entering the new year with a revamped mission statement: “We welcome and partner with justice-impacted people to build skills and relationships that contribute to flourishing communities.”
Scott said she found her calling for providing reentry services when she began to teach higher education at Washington State Penitentiary.
“To be an effective instructor, you have to get to know your students,” she said. “A lot of that was learning their challenges and helping them overcome them. I think that is when the idea of reentry really clicked in my brain. I could see where people struggled and why. It was because they lacked that support.”
Recently, a law impacting reentry support in Washington changed the amount of gate money that is given to individuals when they are released from $40, which was set in 1971 and never updated, to no less than $40. Typically, state law requires those released from prison to return to the county in which they first committed a felony.
“There are a number of factors that impact individuals when they are released and a lot of the time they don’t have the community connections or support to successfully transition,” Scott said. “Sometimes the community that they are coming back to is an unhealthy one.”
Elizabeth Rice, who is on the board of directors, has championed second-chance hiring or hiring individuals with a criminal record. She said one of her missions with the STAR Project is to help remove the stigma that follows individuals with a felony on their record.
Rice, who has worked in a number of positions in the restaurant industry, including management and hiring, said it is easy for leaders in the industry to look at an applicant with a criminal background and say no.
“I kind of had a reputation for hiring second chance and they pushing that policy,” Rice said. “I started to teach people to help bridge the gap between employee and employer. The process of meeting someone where they are and supporting them to where they want to be is incredible.”
39 Under 39
Elizabeth Rice: Easing the transition for formally incarcerated people
Jeremy Burnham, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
Mar 15, 2024
Elizabeth Rice has spent a lot of time trying to improve the lives and futures of currently and formerly incarcerated people.
“I’ve been volunteering in correctional facilities for most of my adult life,” she said.
So, when Rice, 38 — the chief financial officer of a documentary production company that tells the stories of formally incarcerated people — moved to the Valley and was introduced to the executive director of the STAR Project, it’s not surprising she got involved.
Rice joined the board of directors of the nonprofit aimed at helping incarcerated people re-enter society.
The work of the STAR Project lines up with her work with Unincarcerated Productions. It’s all work Rice feels strongly about.,
“(Unincarcerated Productions’) work helps tell stories that would otherwise go unheard — amplifying the voices of the formerly incarcerated members of our communities,” Rice said.
Rice also is a nonprofit development and strategy consultant for Forbes Consulting.
“I help nonprofit organizations and social purpose businesses thrive and increase their capacity through strategic planning, board and staff development, evaluating policy and procedure, and navigating change,” she said.
It’s challenging work.
“I think change is hard for everyone, more so when the change being navigated is perceived as not in alignment with things the organization may have historically done,” she said. “Even if the change is recognized as needed, working from a trauma-informed perspective to help longtime supporters and leaders adjust and move forward can be challenging.”
Rice moved to Walla Walla a year and a half ago because it is the lifelong home of her partner. She said when the two decided to combine lives, they considered moving to the west side of the state, where she is from.
“The thought of dealing with all the Seattle traffic all the time quickly ended that option,” she said.
Bio Box
Name: Elizabeth RiceAge: 38Profession: Nonprofit Development and Strategy, Principal Consultant, Forbes ConsultingResidence: Walla WallaFavorite book you've read lately: "Firekeeper's Daughter" by Angeline Boulley.