PAL
The Principles & Application for Life™ program (PAL) is a 3-month/all-day or 6-month/half-day, voluntary, faith-based program in the Arkansas McPherson Unit. The program familiarizes the inmate with Biblical principles that prompt personal responsibility, integrity and accountability in all areas of life.
Goals of the PAL Program
- Addresses the spiritual needs of the inmates
- Confronts the inmates’ destructive thinking patterns
- Enables the inmates to respond to their life situations from God’s perspective
Since its beginning in 1998, the PAL™ program has seen hundreds of inmates’ lives changed. The success of the PAL™ program is attributed to the meditation and application of God’s Word in the lives of the PAL instructors and the inmates. Free-world visitors have noted that walking into the PAL™ barracks one can sense the presence of God’s Spirit. Even in the midst of prison, God’s Word is able to break the chains of spiritual bondage and bring freedom to those who are rejected by society.
The McPherson PAL™ Program has been a model for most faith-based programs in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. It has also been a model for Corrections Corporation of America (a private prison management company housing inmates across the United States) and has implemented a similar program in 30 prisons in 21 states.
Recidivism rate of PAL inmates at the McPherson Unit:
- 5.04% after 3 years
- 5.30% after 5 years
- 9.35% after 7 years
The PAL program encourages the inmates to a life purpose that reaches beyond their incarceration. Inmates with a life sentence who graduate from PAL become established in their faith in Christ and are excellent examples to the other inmates on the compound. Those who are PAL graduates with a lesser sentence are able to re-enter the free-world with the needed skills to be a productive member of society. Thus, the PAL program equips both types of inmates to be trained how to operate under their God-given authorities with a heart of service.
If you are interested in learning more about the McPherson PAL program or implementing PAL materials in a prison, please contact us.