Yes, it was mandated for my good conduct time.

The existence of such programs throughout the prison industry is a good but useless thing. It's similar to what I used to council my students with, "I don't teach; I can only facilitate you in learning."

I am crime free (other than traffic violations) by my own choice. My morals tell ME how to be a good guy. Yet, many people that I knew in the SOTP, once back into society, ended back inside.

There is a poem by Portia Nelson that demonstrates why people with decision-making issues find it difficult to overcome them.

I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost... I am helpless.
It isn't my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don't see it.
I fall in again.
I can't believe I am in the same place.
But, it isn't my fault.
It still takes me a long time to get out.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in. It's a habit.
My eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault. I get out immediately.

walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

I walk down another street.

***

By the time someone in the SOTP figures out how to fit into society, it's too late.

What's the solution?

There probably isn't one. It's up to the individual to come to his own moral conclusions and THEN find a way to stay out of that hole in the street. Fall in once: shame on the street. Fall in twice: shame on me. (To plagiarize.)