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Cattle once roamed the farmlands located on a hilltop above Moravia in Cayuga County. Today, Cayuga prison sits on 144 of those acres in the quaint village of 1,400, located on the southern end of Owasco Lake in the heart of the popular and well-traveled Finger Lakes region of central New York. Yet the facility's low-profile reduces its presence for travelers and local residents alike.
Construction on the medium-security facility and many others like it began in the fall of 1987 and continued for about a year. It was at that time that the Department literally began bursting at the seams, as its population skyrocketed due to thousands of new commitments as a result of the "crack cocaine" epidemic that rocked New York and the nation. On October 24, 1988, Superintendent Fred Richardson, members of his Executive Team and a small contingent of Cayuga security staff officially reported for duty as construction on the new facility neared completion. With the help of supervised inmate community service crews from nearby Camp
Georgetown in Madison County, the staff began setting up the beds, lockers and related equipment that would be necessary for receiving its initial round of inmates. On November 14, 1988, the first busload of inmates arrived, and, quickly, by December 2, Cayuga was housing 750 inmates.
Cayuga is one of a dozen prototype facilities -known as, "cookie cutters"- designed by DOCS during the mid-1980's and into the early-1990's to handle the inmate population census spike. Its seven large housing units, all of which are barracks-style housing, are situated around the west and south borders of a large, grassy oval that is surrounded by a paved roadway.
Directly across the oval lies the gymnasium/athletics building as well as the horticulture building, the facility infirmary, the maintenance shop and a 32-bed SHU.
The administration building, the inmate mess hall and the visitor's building on the northeast comer of the sprawling complex completed the main compound at the time of its opening 14 years ago. A powerhouse and vehicle maintenance garage are located on a plateau approximately 50 feet below and a few hundred feet south of the main compound.
An expanding system leads to changes
In June of 1989, Cayuga's inmate population was increased by 200 as part of a 2,950- bed "gym expansion " at 17 select facilities Cayuga employees throughout the state. Cayuga's inmates were housed in bunk beds on the basketball court floor of the gym -putting that popular sporting activity on a temporary hold in that building.
In order to provide recreational activities for inmates and reduce the amount of time they are idle -a time-tested security enhancement throughout the system -a large, air-supported canvas building,, commonly known throughout the system as "the bubble," was constructed at that time.
In March of 1990, DOCS received approval from the State Commission of Correction to increase the capacity of its proto-type, dormitory-style housing units from 50 to 90 inmates, utilizing new bunk beds in existing cubicles. The 200 inmates housed in the gym then were moved to the double-bunked dorms and 360 additional inmates were transferred in, bringing the population at Cayuga to a total of 1,302 inmates.
Following this latest round of population expansion, there was much public speculation in the community that the elevated levels of pollution in Owasco Lake were directly attributable to the increased sewage output of the correctional facility. While such charges were eventually proven to be unfounded, DOCS nonetheless worked closely with village of Moravia officials to expand the capacity of its sewage treatment plant. The expansion was completed in 1991. It was entirely funded by the Department at a total cost of $4,918,000.
Between October of 1990 and February of 1991, the inmate population was gradually reduced closer to its initial design capacity. It remained at that level until April of 1994, at which time housing unit capacity was again increased to 90 inmates per dorm, bringing the population back up to 1,302 inmates, The addition of a maximum- security, 200-bed S-block at Cayuga -one of nine such facilities in the state increased the inmate population to 1,502.
It was in the fall of 1997 that construction began on Cayuga's S-block which is used to segregate disruptive inmates from general population and those who repeatedly break prison rules and create security risks. The two-story S-block is the tallest building in the facility, making it visible from anywhere in the compound, It houses 200 inmates in 100 cells designed for double- occupancy.
Following Governor's Pataki's October 2000 announcement of the "right sizing" of DOCS, Cayuga's population dropped by 300 inmates over a two-month period as excess staff transferred, among other locations, to the recently-opened and nearby Five Points prison. The population remained at 1,302 until January of 2002, when the last four double-bunked dorms were reduced from 90 to 60 inmates. As of the summer of 2002, Cayuga's inmate population stood at 1,082 -still slightly above its initial design capacity but a third less than its peak of 1,502 inmates.
Innovative programming provides big benefits
Cayuga's 10 academic teachers and an equal number of trained and seasoned vocational instructors provide educational programming for 650 or so general population inmates. It also provides in-cell study for many of the inmates confined to the facility's maximum-security S-block. That initiative is a relatively new one, part of a plan to expand educational opportunities for all inmates, regardless of housing status.
This initiative comes on the heels of Commissioner Goord's previous decision to raise the academic bar and require that in- mates achieve at least a ninth-grade level of proficiency in both reading and math skills, an enhancement over the previous benchmark of an eighth-grade efficiency level in both of those disciplines.
A dedicated staff of academic instructors at Cayuga consistently produce students who rapidly progress through the curriculum, many of whom obtain their GED prior to their release from the state prison system. Studies have shown that inmates who have a GED have a better chance of getting a job and becoming law-abiding citizens upon their eventual reintegration into society.
On the vocational side of class earlier this year the ledger, instructors not only train inmates for employment on the outside, but also provide them with live-work experience that benefits not only the facility but the community at large as well.
An excellent example of that policy involves the facility's burgeoning horticulture program. Not only do those inmates enrolled in the Cayuga horticulture program grow plants that help to beautify the sprawling grounds at the facility, they also grow flora shipped to nearby Butler, Camp Pharsalia and Monterey Shock, sprucing up those grounds as well.
Another sign of the success of Cayuga's vocational shops can be found in the masonry program. Last year, for instance, masonry inmates poured a new concrete slab in the outdoor weight pavilion, and this year they are designing and constructing outdoor cigarette butt containers. The hope is to alleviate the unsightly collection of cigarette butts discarded near the entrances of dormitories and other buildings where smoking is prohibited; at the same time, the environment will benefit.
There is one shop at Cayuga, however, that really stands out as far as its contributions to the facility, the entire Department and the community.
Under the tutelage of Vocational Instructor Frank Swasty, student inmates who have completed the facility's comprehensive computer operator or general business vocational programs are recruited for extensive training in computer design, manufacturing and repair. Over the past five years, Instructor Swasty and his knowledgeable student inmates have constructed servers and workstations for academic learning labs at Cayuga and several other Department facilities; they also have been able to keep out-of-warranty facility computers working long beyond their life expectancies.
The computer initiative ascended to an even higher level earlier this year. In June, a facility proposal suggested that Cayuga utilize its computer repair shop to benefit the local community. Upon approval from Central Office, Instructor Swasty solicited donations of used computers from the New York State Lottery Commission. Those computers were in turn refurbished by the student inmates and then were donated to local non-profit organizations.
As of early July, the community recipients included the Harriet Tubman Home, the Montessori Children's House and Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Auburn and Cayuga counties. Over the summer, Cayuga officials also were mulling the prospects of helping the Auburn YMCA establish after-school educational programs for per-high school and high school students. If all goes as expected, the initiative likely will be implemented sometime during the fall semester.
With more than 30 years of experience in electronics manufacturing as well as production management, Instructor Swasty provides a wealth of knowledge as well as a strong work ethic to his student inmates. The hope is that the ongoing experience of the inmates in repairing computers will translate into valuable employment upon their eventual release from prison and reintegration into the community.
The proof is in the pudding. Instructor Swasty proudly speaks of the many letters he has received from several of his former inmate students who have continued their education or found employment in the computer field after they were released from prison.
It is when they are released from prison that these inmates get to learn the Internet- inmates do not have access to the world wide web under any circumstances while in prison. "Working with these students gives me the satisfaction of knowing that if they fully participate, they have the opportunity to learn real, marketable job skills and become contributing members of society," said Instructor Swasty.
Cayuga also provides a variety of other valuable programs to its inmate population, a list which includes:
An integral part of the local fabric
Over the years, Cayuga has maintained an extremely supportive relationship with the community and particularly the Moravia Food Pantry, its primary charitable organization.
Cayuga has long provided inmate community service crews to unload tractor trailer loads of food donated by members of the community and charitable organizations to the Regional Food Pantry, which in turn is provided to area Soup kitchens and food pantries for distribution to the area's needy. Additionally, Cayuga has encouraged inmates and staff alike to donate food and clothing items to the pantry for distribution to the needy. Cayuga also conducts annual holiday food drives among the staff and inmates.
Cayuga's supervised community service crews have been a vital part of the local community over the years. If not for DOCS, many local worthy projects would not have otherwise been completed because of fiscal constraints. Since 1995, Cayuga community service crews have logged a total of 69,370 work hours with 10,009 hours of security supervision.
With the exception of the food pantry duties, Cayuga's crews no longer work in the community. But they still make a local impact, as supervised crews are assigned to pick up trash along the Thruway.
For the past three years, employees at Cayuga have participated in the laudable " Adopt a Family" program that's been a long-time local program. The highly successful program is coordinated by Moravia Food Pantry and the leadership of the various churches in the Moravia area. Through bake sales and a wide variety of other fund- raising activities, employees at Cayuga have been able to build a hefty fund which is used each year to buy clothing, food and children's gifts which are donated to needy families in the community to help ensure that they have a happy holiday season.
Under the program, the needy families remain anonymous. The facility and others throughout the local community who participate in this program are provided with profiles of the needy area families (for example, the number, ages and sex of the children, and what they want or need). Staff then eagerly donate their own time to shop for, and gift wrap, the purchased items for delivery at Christmas. This ongoing effort is the pet project of Secretary Vicki Cameron, who organizes the annual bake sales and several of the other fund raisers and leads the annual shopping expeditions.
Another ongoing project that the facility takes much pride in -and rightly so -is the Child Identification Program. Unnder the initiative, security staff from Cayuga regularly visit local schools and various well-attended community events. Once they're there, they provide valuable and possibly life-saving identification packets for children, consisting of the child's of photo and fingerprints. This information is then placed in safe keeping by the child's parents for use in the event that the child is ever lost or abducted. Most of the Correction Officers who participate in this ongoing project say they get a real sense of accomplishment as a result of their efforts to protect the area's children.
Each October, staff and inmates also participate in the annual Make a Difference Day activities to benefit the needy. For 2001, staff and inmates donated more than $2,300 to the survivors of those killed in the 9-11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City.
This summer, several Cayuga staffers became involved in a 170 new community initiative which sported rather long tentacles. They became eager participants in the annual Law Enforcement Torch Run to benefit Special Olympics.
Nurse Administrator David Delfavero, Dentist Edward Epstein, Nurses Thomas Minnoe and William Robinson and Correction Officers John Tomlinson and Mark Standinger ran in the May 30th event, which raises money through pledges for the total number of miles run by each participant. Several members of the Cayuga group ran three six- mile legs of the event to support other local community groups that were unable to come up with a sufficient number of run participants. The employees raised over $500.
Article is from DOCS TODAY September 2002