Title: The RFK Experiment Synopsis: With the expectation of being sent to a maximum security federal penitentiary, I was surprised to arrive at my new home. A co-ed experimental institution located in a valley surrounded by mountains, in Morgantown, West Virginia. An indoor, olympic size, swimming pool, golf course, auditorium,state of the art gym, and many other luxury amenities filled the compound.This is an inside look at the experimental program Robert F. Kennedy envisioned. Human instincts and circumstances which were unavoidable in an institution as open as this. The federal institution without fences. An institution where intimate relationships were permitted. An institution where sex was performed on an impulse of opportunity. An institution where visitors could mingle with the general population, and use the facilities the center offered. For the 300+ inmates at the center, I never recalled anything that came close to a skirmish, or fight. No escapes. Six babies were born as a result of this program. Several marriages, and countless relationships. Average age: 22. Ratio, male to female: 50-50. I was transferred to Pleasanton, California, from Morgantown, a year before my release date. Pleasanton was also a co-ed federal center, although, not as open as Morgantown. Bottom line: Put girls and boys together, and the inevitable will happen. Where there's a will, there's a way! The bonds established at these centers will be forever cherished and remembered. An inside look at the sex, drugs, and alcohol , in an experimental program which proved to be too costly and ineffective to continue. I strongly disagree... Comments: Based on a true story
Rudy Tkacik has worked for the US Government, restoring Historical Monuments in the Washington DC area since 1981. He currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee on a small horse ranch, and is a superintendent for a major contracting firm in Maryland. He travels globally to various countries and is very happy.
A great piece of history of the brief co-ed institutional rehabilitation program. Mr. Tkacik hit the nail on the head. As a retiree of the Bureau of Prisons, Morgantown, W. Va., I am aware of the recitivism rates, and believe the program should not have been dismissed.
Judy Thomas P.H.D