The Rhode Island Department of Corrections is pleased to announce the RIDOC’s Spring 2009 Media Day to be held on Thursday, June 4th, from 9 a.m. until approximately noon. The Department’s first ever Media Day was held in the fall of 2007 and was well received. Space is limited, so members of the media are urged to mark their calendars and reserve their spot as soon as possible.
Attendance at the Spring Media Day must be confirmed at least a week in advance. Proper dress and ID are required. The day will begin with a gathering at the main administration building, located at 40 Howard Ave., Cranston, where participants will hear briefly from Corrections Director A.T. Wall II and Chief of Information and Public Relations Tracey E. Zeckhausen and then will board a RIDOC vehicle and head off to tour three facilities – Maximum Security, the Donald Price Men’s Medium Security Facility, and the Men’s Minimum Security Facility. The tentative schedule for the day is as follows:
9 a.m. – Gathering at the Administration building with Director Wall and Tracey Zeckhausen. Light refreshments will be provided.
9:30 a.m. – Tour of Maximum Security – The state’s oldest operational prison averaged 444 inmates in FY 08. This facility has always been on the tour since many participants requested a return visit;
10 a.m. – Tour of the Donald Price Medium Security Facility – The Donald Price Facility was constructed in 1929 and opened in 1932. This facility was originally designed and first used to house youthful offenders. The facility was designated as a special needs unit in 1990 and closed in 1993 due to budget cuts. It re-opened in 1997 as a medium level facility for lower-risk medium security sentenced males. The average population in 2008 was 351. The building is named for RIDOC Correctional Officer Donald Price, killed in 1973 in the line of duty.
10:45 a.m. – Tour of the Men’s Minimum Security Facility – The Minimum Security facility was opened in 1978 in a converted hospital building on Howard Avenue in Cranston. In 1989, Minimum Security (MIN) expanded to a second building, and in July of 1992, with the construction of a connecting addition, the facility became one large complex, with a 710-bed inmate capacity. The facility had an average population of 657 in 2008.
11:30 a.m. Return to Administration Building for wrap-up and Q&A
While it is not the purpose of Media Day to provide opportunity for stock footage, b-roll, or sound, we will allow a limited amount of that if it is arranged in advance and does not detract from the tours or cause a deviation from the tight schedule outlined above. We would also be happy to discuss opportunities to arrange for this at another time with interested parties.
To reserve a spot for the spring 2009 Media Day, please contact Tracey E. Zeckhausen, Chief of Information and Public Relations, at (401) 462-2609 or tracey.zeckhausen@doc.ri.gov. In order to register, you must submit your full name and date of birth so that a routine background check can be completed prior to entering the prisons.