While teaching in Western Canada, Trent psychology graduate Jessica Reid, found her true calling in the form of one of her students—a five-year old girl, missing her father who was serving time in prison.
Long separated from her own father, Ms. Reid was inspired to support children of incarcerated parents, a stigmatized and under-represented sector of the population.
Since that defining moment she has become the co-founder and executive director of FEAT, the only non-profit organization providing support for affected children and their families, often struggling in isolation and afraid to seek help from their peers. She also reunited with her father who is FEAT’s other co-founder.
Recognizing a void in programming to support these children in Canada, Ms. Reid realized she needed vital research to maximize the impact of her organization, raise awareness and facilitate government support.
In turn she returned to Trent University this past September to work on her master’s thesis in developmental psychology, focusing on the differential impact of parental incarceration, comparing the internalizing and externalizing behaviours of boys and girls ages six to twelve.
“Children of incarcerated parents are an understudied, forgotten at-risk population in Canada,” stated Ms. Reid. “Through my research I hope to leverage support from the government and provide evidence-based programming to optimize their outcome and break the cycle of intergenerational crime. I hope to increase their self esteem, build protective factors, and foster the parent-child relationship."
Accordingly, she feels Trent has provided a unique educational, interactive and hands-on experience that propelled her interest in the parent child-relationship. Outside of working 60 hours per week at FEAT, Ms. Reid is conducting her research work at Trent under the supervision of Dr. Elaine Scharfe.
“Dr. Scharfe enabled me to run an organization and complete my master’s,” said Ms. Reid. “I do realize the importance of conducting this research. It is evident that the increase in children’s self-esteem, their improvement at school and successful re-integration of family back into society, showcases the beneficial impact of our programs. However, empirically examining the needs is vital to developing evidenced-based programs which can be replicated across the country.”
Ms. Reid feels Trent cultivated critical thinking and analytical skills, providing her with the confidence to launch and operate FEAT and address this large, systemic issue of parental incarceration.
“I am using my skill set throughout the FEAT organization whether navigating different resources for grant writing or developing community partnership,” revealed Ms. Reid. “My Trent experience enabled me to achieve success throughout the early stages of the organization.”
Ms. Reid realizes the demanding and self-sacrificing nature of sustaining a non-profit organization like FEAT. She recently completed a walk from Toronto to Ottawa to raise awareness and support. In future she plans to open FEAT facilities across the country, with satellite offices in most major cities.
She states, “Despite the cycle of inter-generational crime, there is a gap in support for the unique needs of children left behind which fuels my passion to continue to dedicate my life to help build brighter futures for marginalized kids who have done nothing wrong.”
Posted on Thursday, July 16, 2015.