TALKING CHAINS FOR CLINICAL THERAPY

Posted by Admin on Jul 2nd, 2009 | no comments

Good morning Mrs. Burney,

I am Andrea Ashby, (Wilma & Alfred Austin’s daughter).  I, along with Patricia Mays, am working with the Student Option for Success Program (S.O.S.) at Raines High School.  We meet in the evenings with primary and secondary students who have repeatedly violated the Student Code of Conduct.  Their parents choose to bring their children to the 6-session S.O.S. program rather than enrolling them in an alternative school. (The parents must attend each session with their child.)

We discuss making positive choices in an interactive group setting.  Your book, “If These Chains Could Talk” is absolutely perfect for these youth because all of them deal with the same issues as the inmates.  I have only been working with the program for a month; however, I feel that it would be more helpful to incorporate passages from your book with our lessons.  Therefore, I would like to know how I may purchase more copies of the book.  Also, since our program continuously rotates and new students enroll at various times throughout the school year, I would like to know if I may have permission to copy one or two pages of your book.  I would like to offer handouts for the students to keep as a reference.

Thank you for all you have done for our children, including contributing to the success of myself and AJ.

Andrea M.  Ashby, School Psychologist

Duval County Public Schools

EE/SS K-8 West Cluster – #75A

(904) 693-7942

THE SOCIAL STATUS OF BLACK MEN AND WOMEN

Posted by Admin on Jul 2nd, 2009 | no comments

The pipeline begins at birth. All children need to be raised in enriching, nurturing, healthful, and cognitively stimulating environments from birth in order for them to develop to their maximum potential. Investing in quality ECE for young black male children will help to ensure that they enter the pipeline to higher education and the work force.

February 11, 2008

Dr. Billy Close, Chair
Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men & Boys
Bureau of Criminal Justice Programs
Office of the Attorney General
PL-01 The Capitol
Tallahassee, FL  32399-1050

Dear Dr. Close:

I’m so glad that Betty Burney, author of the book, “If These Chains Could Talk,” decided to give voice to the harsh realities young men face when choosing to engage in criminal behavior. Last week, I had the opportunity to read the book. I wish that I could say that I picked it up out of interest or because I was using it for research. No. I read the book because my 14-year-old son was given it by his school’s Hearing Officer after being suspended from school and sent to an alternative school for 45 days.

I am the father of six school-aged children and I can tell you that I have relied on many people, experiences, and organizations to help me teach my children the importance of education and good behavior. But very few things have moved me the way Mrs. Burney’s book has. In the most realistic manner, the book highlighted the harsh realities children face when choosing to engage in criminal behavior. It also offered some straight-forward, “off-the-chain” advice for parents that spoke directly to me about things I failed to realize and understand. There is no job that is more important (or more difficult) than providing my children with the tools and the opportunities they need to be successful citizens.

It is my understanding that the Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men & Boys is an organization that is striving to help communities improve the conditions for Black men and boys. As a Black man who works every day to ensure that I serve as a positive role model to my children, I can tell you that your work in “promoting an environment that is conducive to productivity, success, and excellence for Black men and boys throughout the state” is very important. Like me, you will also benefit from many of the lessons the young men offered in the book, If These Chains Could Talk. Please read the book and share it with the persons you strive to reach each day. You won’t be sorry; I sure wasn’t.

Sincerely,

Ronald B. Hobbs
ron.hobbs@verizonbusiness.com
(904) 607-8465

ADDRESSING THE MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS

Posted by Admin on Jul 2nd, 2009 | one comment

63% of all children entering juvenile detention facilities are African American. Please review the testimonial below about how my book addresses the mental health issues affecting our youth.

Ms. Burney,

Hello! I am a subcontracted counselor with DJJ – I recently read your book, “If These Chains Could Talk”. I was informed of it by one of the kids in my group for juvenile felons and delinquents (although I hate that word!). Thank you for your words – we have been reading it in group and the young men are sometimes visibly shaken from hearing the letters – some of them lived that life.

Again, thank you and also for your service to our community!

Angela Atkins, M.Ed.

Mental Health Counselor Intern

904-993-1894

STRAIGHT-TALK BOOK HAVING AN IMPACT

Posted by Admin on Jul 2nd, 2009 | no comments

Originally published Wednesday, December 20, 2006 in the Florida Times Union Newspaper – Jacksonville.com by Tonya Weathersbee, tonya.weathersbee@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4251

Before Betty Burney (far left in pic below) became a politician, she was an activist.  And it’s refreshing to see that her two years on the Duval County School Board haven’t changed that.  ”I think that if you have a passion, and if you can articulate that passion to the rest of the board, you can get things done,” Burney told me. ”All you have to do is keep kids in the front of your mind.”

No doubt Burney has been doing that. Much of Jacksonville – and even some of the country -  got news of the extent of her activism recently, after Outback Steakhouse on Jacksonville Beach hosted a reception for her to raise money so she can publish more copies of her book, If These Chains Could Talk. Burney wrote the soft-cover book about a year ago, which chronicles how juvenile inmates at the Duval County jail began their descent into crime. Burney’s book is a far cry from being a glamorization of the thug life, because the juveniles tarnish the allure of crime by talking about the bleakness of life behind bars. They also tell other juveniles what they should do to avoid a life of incarceration. ”What the kids [in the book] are saying to other kids is stay in school, listen to your teachers and avoid the things that they did,” Burney said. ”Many times, when they hear it [advice] from another kid, they listen more.”

More kids may get to check out Burney’s book. Duval School’s Superintendent Joseph Wise wants to make it a part of the curriculum for eighth- and ninth-graders. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office recently donated $25,000 confiscated from drug arrests to provide books for the schools. ”The response has been tremendous,” Burney said. ”Teachers, parents, a lot of folks have been calling.  I even got a call from a dean at a middle school in New York City who wants to purchase books for her entire school. She said: ‘I saw myself in a lot of what the kids were saying. … I’ve been a good teacher and I’ve been a bad one. This book is a reminder for me.’

To read the complete article on this outstanding book, please visit Straight Talk >