美国国家公共电台 NPR--A man started his college degree in prison. Can he finish on the outside?

A man started his college degree in prison. Can he finish on the outside?

Transcript¹

Daniel Duron got a rare opportunity to work on his bachelor's degree while in prison. Early release means he'll have to finish his final semester as a college student on the outside.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Getting an education betters the chances that people who are released from prison don't end up back inside. For the last two years, NPR's Elissa Nadworny has been reporting on several men working on their bachelor's degrees while incarcerated². It's an opportunity many more people will have starting next year when the federal government opens up Pell grants to people in federal and state prisons. Yesterday, we met student Daniel Duron. Today, Elissa picks up where Daniel has been released and now has to work on finishing his degree as a free man.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Hey, Floyd (ph), they can come in now.

ELISSA NADWORNY, BYLINE³: Most of Daniel Duron's college experience started inside a medium security prison in Norco, Calif.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Presentations will start promptly⁴ at 1:45.

NADWORNY: But an early release means he now has to finish his college classes on the outside. And going from nearly five years in a cell to strolling around a liberal arts campus...

DANIEL DURON: It's a lot bigger than I thought. It's going to be a long - a lot of walking.

NADWORNY: That's a lot for anyone. But Daniel, he's an especially nervous guy. New things, uncertainty⁵, they unsettle him. It's a holdover from years in prison and a traumatic childhood in a dysfunctional and often unstable⁶ family.

DURON: Yeah, you park there.

NADWORNY: But family is family. And Daniel hasn't seen his in a long time.

You ready for this?

DURON: Yeah (laughter).

NADWORNY: So on the same day he was released from prison, after he visits campus...

DURON: Hey, little man.

(CROSSTALK, LAUGHTER)

NADWORNY: ...His mother, Virginia (ph), greets him, her arm around Daniel's 11-year-old son who he hasn't seen in more than a year.

VIRGINIA: He's going to school, baby. He's going to be a college graduate.

NADWORNY: One of Daniel's challenges, like many people getting out of prison, will be resisting the pull of his past. Home, family - for Daniel, it's associated with gangs, drugs and pain. The tattoos⁷ on his arms, his neck are a constant reminder⁸ and one he's determined⁹ to shed.

DURON: And it's not even art. It's just, like, gang tattoos.

NADWORNY: Daniel tells his mom going to an elite¹⁰ college like Pitzer offers a totally different world.

DURON: I try to explain to you, like, how, like, life-changing it is. But...

NADWORNY: She's excited for Daniel. She even has a Pitzer bumper¹¹ sticker on her car. But she's also worried about old influences, his old homeboys. They could derail him. You've got to stay focused, she tells him.

VIRGINIA: And it's up to you to finish for yourself and for your son...

DURON: Yeah.

VIRGINIA: ...Because look at - there's no homeboys here.

NADWORNY: Over the next few months, Daniel starts to set up his life on the outside. He gets a paid internship¹² at the college. And he moves into an on-campus apartment with another formerly¹³ incarcerated student.

DURON: No, it's really heavy. It's books.

NADWORNY: And last fall, he started classes in-person.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

MIGUEL TINKER SALAS: My name is Miguel Tinker Salas. I always taught my classes with music.

NADWORNY: Outside of prison, Daniel is choosing his own course schedule. And a class learning about his Mexican identity was a top priority.

SALAS: (Speaking Spanish).

DURON: No.

SALAS: (Speaking Spanish).

DURON: Yeah, I know some Spanish. I just can't speak fluently.

SALAS: That's fine. That's fine. The class is not in Spanish.

NADWORNY: Daniel is eager to throw himself into the experience of being a college student. But when producer Lauren Migaki and I check back in with him a few weeks later, he's having a tough time. There's so much newness. He's been so nervous about the experience, he's nearly given himself a panic attack. Plus, on campus in his early 40s, with a shaved head and arms covered in tattoos, he sticks out. Daniel tells us it's not uncommon¹⁴ for other students to ignore or avoid him.

DURON: Overall, like, in general, like, in groups and stuff, like, it's really kind of hard. I go into the dining hall, you know, I usually eat, like, lunch or dinner by myself. And, yeah, it's been a little tougher than I thought.

NADWORNY: Even things like Google are overwhelming.

DURON: A lot of the sites that I click on have nothing, really, to do with what I'm looking for. I already had got a headache from, like, just hitting roadblocks.

NADWORNY: On top of all the stress and doing the readings and writing papers...

UNIDENTIFIED PAROLE OFFICER: What's the progress on that right now?

NADWORNY: ...Daniel's navigating¹⁵ visits from his parole officer.

UNIDENTIFIED PAROLE OFFICER: So campus life is good so far?

DURON: Yeah. Meeting people, like...

NADWORNY: He's making sure Daniel's hanging out with the right people, avoiding interactions with the police...

UNIDENTIFIED PAROLE OFFICER: I'm going to test you, OK?

NADWORNY: ...And getting him to pee in a cup for a drug test.

UNIDENTIFIED PAROLE OFFICER: You're good, right?

DURON: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED PAROLE OFFICER: OK. Let's test you.

DURON: OK.

NADWORNY: Daniel knows his tendency is to retreat when he gets overwhelmed or nervous.

DURON: So I'm just trying to, like, get out of, like, my comfort zone.

NADWORNY: He tries rock climbing. He's gone hiking. And he's found real joy at a club he'd never imagined himself in, ballroom¹⁶ dancing.

DURON: I went, like, three times already. They had bachata, tango or something. And then we had a waltz. Yeah.

NADWORNY: What was that like?

DURON: Intimidating¹⁷ because, like, I only dance, like, when I'm alone, like, goofing¹⁸ around and stuff.

NADWORNY: When we visit him right before finals, even Daniel's appearance has changed.

DURON: It's way lighter¹⁹.

NADWORNY: He's been undergoing treatments to remove his tattoos. His forearms, normally covered in dark black ink, are now a soft gray.

DURON: But I just wish it was off already.

NADWORNY: By the end of the semester, Daniel finishes with nearly all A's, a more confident student, a more confident and comfortable human being.

(SOUNDBITE OF EDWARD ELGAR'S "POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE MARCHES")

NADWORNY: This May, he collected his bachelor's degree, the first in his family to do so.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Daniel R. Duron.

(CHEERING)

NADWORNY: For Daniel and other formerly incarcerated students, this is a major accomplishment²⁰. But there are still some big questions. Where will Daniel work? How will he make money? At Pitzer, he's had the chance to rethink what his life is for. It's not just a life without crime, it's a life with purpose.

DURON: But I want to do something meaningful. Personally, I could probably get a job at a warehouse²¹ doing something. I don't know. But it probably doesn't have any kind of, like, meaning behind it. So...

NADWORNY: But after dozens of job applications, so far, Daniel only has a stack of rejections²² for full-time²³ employment. He knows going forward that just having a college degree, even from a school like Pitzer, might not be enough to overcome his prison record and the traumas²⁴ of his past.

DURON: How I was raised and what had happened and - there's no getting around it. Everything that happened in my life is shaping, like, who I've become. And honestly, to tell you the truth, like, I love being me. I really do, you know? I just got to embrace it.

NADWORNY: That's very wise.

DURON: Yeah, still working on some of it.

NADWORNY: In the meantime, he says college gave him the tools and the information to navigate²⁵ a world where you have to keep going even when there are setbacks and delays.

Elissa Nadworny, NPR News, Claremont, Calif.

(SOUNDBITE OF LOS GATOS' "BLUDAN")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 incarcerated   

钳闭的

参考例句：

• They were incarcerated for the duration of the war. 战争期间，他们被关在狱中。 来自辞典例句
• I don't want to worry them by being incarcerated. 我不想让他们知道我被拘禁的事情。 来自电影对白

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

5 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

6 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

7 tattoos   

n.文身( tattoo的名词复数 )；归营鼓；军队夜间表演操；连续有节奏的敲击声v.刺青，文身( tattoo的第三人称单数 )；连续有节奏地敲击；作连续有节奏的敲击

参考例句：

• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的胳膊上刺满了花纹。
• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的双臂刺满了纹身。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

9 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

10 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

11 bumper   

n.(汽车上的)保险杠；adj.特大的，丰盛的

参考例句：

• The painting represents the scene of a bumper harvest.这幅画描绘了丰收的景象。
• This year we have a bumper harvest in grain.今年我们谷物丰收。

12 internship   

n.实习医师，实习医师期

参考例句：

• an internship at a television station 在电视台的实习期
• a summer internship with a small stipend 薪水微薄的暑期实习

13 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

14 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

15 navigating   

v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的现在分词 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃

参考例句：

• These can also be very useful when navigating time-based documents, such as video and audio. 它对于和时间有关的文档非常有用，比如视频和音频文档。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Vehicles slowed to a crawl on city roads, navigating slushy snow. 汽车在市区路上行驶缓慢，穿越泥泞的雪地。 来自互联网

16 ballroom   

n.舞厅

参考例句：

• The boss of the ballroom excused them the fee.舞厅老板给他们免费。
• I go ballroom dancing twice a week.我一个星期跳两次交际舞。

17 intimidating   

vt.恐吓，威胁( intimidate的现在分词)

参考例句：

• They were accused of intimidating people into voting for them. 他们被控胁迫选民投他们的票。
• This kind of questioning can be very intimidating to children. 这种问话的方式可能让孩子们非常害怕。

18 goofing   

v.弄糟( goof的现在分词 )；混；打发时间；出大错

参考例句：

• He should have been studying instead of goofing around last night. 他昨晚应该念书，不应该混。 来自走遍美国快乐40招
• Why don't you just admit you're goofing off? 偷了懒就偷了赖，还不爽爽快快承认？ 来自辞典例句

19 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

20 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

21 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

22 rejections   

拒绝( rejection的名词复数 )； 摒弃； 剔除物； 排斥

参考例句：

• Most writers endure a number of rejections before being published. 大部分作家经历无数次的退稿才守得云开，作品得到发表。
• Supervise workers and monitors production quality to minimize rejections. 管理工人，监控生产质量，减少退货。

23 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

24 traumas   

n.心灵创伤( trauma的名词复数 )；损伤；痛苦经历；挫折

参考例句：

• She felt exhausted after the traumas of recent weeks. 她经受了最近几个星期的痛苦之后感到精疲力竭。
• Conclusion: Safety lens of spectacles can protect the occurrence of ocular traumas. 结论：安全镜片可以预防眼镜碎片所致的眼外伤。 来自互联网

25 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。