In 2011, Mr. McLean became the Founder and Executive Director of Pathway to Freedom, after serving as the Director of the Inner Change Freedom Initiative program in Arkansas from 2006-2011 and working for Prison Fellowship Ministries. He served as the IFI Reentry manager in Kansas from 2000-2005 and served on the reentry subcommittee to foster prisoner risk reduction and reentry under Kathleen Sebelius, the Governor of Kansas.
He also served on Arkansas Governor, Asa Hutchinson’s Restore Hope Summit Committee since its inception and was selected as its moderator in 2015 and 2017. In 2018, he was honored with the Marie Interfaith Civic Leadership Award, given annually to recognize people whose work addresses community issues in Arkansas.
He was appointed by Arkansas Governor, Sarah Huckabee Sanders to serve on the new Legislative Recidivism Reduction Task Force in 2023. Mr. McLean is an Offender Workforce Development Specialist through the National Institute of Corrections and a member of the American Corrections Association.
We have witnessed Christian ministry organizations can be as aggressive and territorial as any other group reaching out to help ‘the least of these.’ How do you personally handle competition you’ve faced among other Christian organizations offering ministry in rehabilitation?
There are roughly 85,000 adult offenders incarcerated or on probation and parole in Arkansas. Those numbers continue to increase in our state with many criminogenic needs going unmet due to a shortage of service providers and individuals providing services to these individuals. Jesus made the statement,
“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. So, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send
out workers His harvest”
(Matt. 9:37-38 AMP).
I embrace and pray for laborers, ministries, and organizations to join us in seeing the lives of prisoners and formerly incarcerated individuals transformed,
so they can become productive law-abiding citizens and leaders in their homes, churches, and communities. I do not see our work as a competition to any other ministry but as a completion of the work God has commissioned us as Christians. As the body of Christ, we have many gifts that work in sync with God’s plan as we allow these gifts to operate as God has designed. There is no “I” in Team, and we can make a greater impact in countless lives if we work together. The Apostle Paul summed it up in his letter to the Corinthian church as he stated, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth” (I Corinthians 3:6-7 NASB).
Being the founder and leader of a nonprofit is not for the faint of heart. From your own experience growing up your business, share a word of wisdom to help our Serving USA community see hope despite hardships launching a nonprofit, or encouragement to make it through the day-to-day.
I am thankful to God for the opportunity He has afforded me to serve in this capacity to see prisoners, formerly incarcerated individuals, and their families' lives transformed. I am also thankful that I can’t see the future or the obstacles and hurdles I must endure along the way as I serve in this capacity. As the Founder of a non-profit organization, serving prisoners and formerly incarcerated individuals is not something I saw for myself,
but God, in His infinite wisdom and power, inspired and compelled me to answer His “Call”!
There are countless stories I can share of God’s providence, intervention, and miracles He has allowed me to experience along this journey.
My faith, relationship, and dependence on God have been strengthened and continue to be challenged. I find strength in this scripture,
“For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (II Corinthians 4:17-18).
Pathway to Freedom (PTF) opened the program for its first inmate class on September 26, 2011. Nearly 5 years after the program's start date in May 2016, I wrote a letter to our partners and volunteers informing them of a financial crisis we were facing as donations were down for the past year.
Many partners made valiant efforts in their giving, but it wasn’t enough to sustain us in moving forward as an organization. I realized quickly our options were dwindling, and I was faced with a critical decision regarding PTF’s future.
During this tumultuous time, I was encouraged by someone to read the book “Facing the Blitz” by Jeff Kemp. Jeff laid out three strategies for turning trials into triumphs. In Chapter 11 of the book, “Leave a Lasting Legacy,” Jeff’s story mirrored my story, as his non-profit organization was faced with a financial crisis, and they fell short of their fundraising goals that threatened the organization’s future. This book inspired me to continue to hold fast and evaluate other options, so I declared a day of fast and prayer in July 2016 at our prison with our 200 PTF prisoner population and PTF staff.
Our Major and security staff were perplexed by our prisoner population's low turnout for morning breakfast in the prison “Chow Hall”.
As I arrived at work that morning, our Major asked what was going on because hardly anyone showed up for breakfast. I smiled and told her the men had committed themselves to a day of fasting and prayer. She responded by saying, How did you get them to do that? She had never seen anything like this before. I told her, it wasn’t me and I could never get them to do this.
It was their commitment to God for a greater cause.
As the days and weeks went on, we didn’t see any changes to our financial situation, so I finally decided to surrender and informed our Board of Directors at our August 2016 meeting that it was time to close the prison program down.
This was one of the most gut-wrenching things I ever remember doing, and I know the Board of directors was respectfully waiting for me to make the call. Following that meeting, I notified the Arkansas Department of Corrections (DOC) of our desire to cancel our contract and lease with them for program services. Throughout the month of September 2016, we were packing and making plans to move out of the Hawkins Unit.
During our packing and planning to move out, I was informed by the DOC that the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette newspaper reached out to them and wanted to interview me and write an article about PTF’s closing. I was reluctant at first to agree to an interview, but I went through with it. The article was published on Sunday, September 25, 2016, and titled, “Coffersdry, prison program folding up”. Later that evening, I received a message from a local businessman who had read the article and asked to meet with me.
The following day, Monday, September 26, 2016, our five-year anniversary, we met,
and he guaranteed me that a certain portion of the financial needs of the Program would be met and that he would be willing to join the board of directors and continue to help PTF remain sustainable through future years.
After contacting the PTF Board of Directors, I contacted the DOC authorities, and the contract and lease were reinstated. The following day, Tuesday, September 25, 2016, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette newspaper published another article, “Faith-based prison program saved by donors, the director says.” As I reflect on this amazing God story and witness the omnipotent power of God resurrecting our organization and our service to prisoners and the formerly incarcerated, I can’t refute the thought that this “blitz” or obstacle was a good thing for us to walk through as an organization. I couldn’t say this at the time, and I would have never welcomed its presence.
I was able to face my giant, strategize, plan, and execute what I knew with our team, but it wasn’t until I surrendered and acknowledged my powerlessness through prayer and a humbled heart that I witnessed the power of God.
This quote resonates so well with me and our story,
“In the midst of difficulty lies opportunity” (Albert Einstein).
It was through our most difficult circumstances that God created better opportunities and growth for the organization. Our leadership and board of directors have been strengthened along with an increase in revenue and donor recruitment. The organization has become more visible throughout the state and beyond.
Your career history has exposed you to a variety of needs incarcerated people face. In your opinion, what is the biggest problem or challenge we collectively can focus on fixing that might help the largest amount of people?
Recidivism negatively affects everyone throughout our nation: families, communities, citizens, and government. Roughly 90% of prisoners will be released back into our communities and 68% of those will re-offend and go back within 3 years. How do we as a community prepare ourselves to receive them back? These individuals leaving prison face varied needs as they return to their communities. We must address these needs during and following their incarceration for them to make a successful transition.
The below eight criminogenic risk factors for criminal behavior must be addressed to assist individuals toward a successful transition to our communities. The more risk factors present, the greater the risk of committing criminal acts.
These evidence-based practices are known to the criminal justice system.
Attributes associated with criminal behaviors and recidivism include(Gendreau, P. & Andrews, D.A. 1990):
1. Antisocial attitudes, values, and beliefs (criminal thinking)
2. Pro-criminal associates and isolation from pro-social associates
3. Particular temperament and behavioral characteristics (e.g., egocentrism)
4. Weak problem-solving and social skills
5. Criminal history
6. Negative family factors (i.e., abuse, unstructured or undisciplined environment), criminality in the family, substance abuse in the family)
7. Low levels of vocational and educational skills
8. Substance abuse
My 23 years working in the criminal justice system have taught me the importance of addressing these attributes associated with criminal behavior.
As a Pre-release and Post-release prison program, I recognized we had to change the culture of the prison to bring about significant behavior change in the individuals we serve. PTF’s Christ-centered approach has introduced these men to a different value and belief system that was contrary to the one they lived.
The culture we have created addresses these eight attributes and assists in fostering and enhancing their spiritual development with Jesus Christ.
I am encouraged to say that our partnership and service to the Arkansas Department of Corrections has been fulfilling.
We thank God we have been true to fulfilling our stated goals and commitments.
The Arkansas Department of Corrections released a study on the state recidivism rate. The study released in April 2021 by the Arkansas Department of Corrections that tracked persons released from prison in 2016 shows that Pathway to Freedom (PTF) produced the best results among all programs in reducing recidivism in the Arkansas Division of Corrections (ADC). The recidivism rate of those who completed the PTF program stood at 22.73% at three years after release compared to a system-wide rate of 47.49%.
How You Can Make a Big Difference
Two Ways to Donate
Donate to Pathway to Freedom, Inc.
Using the above link, you’ll discover a donation page for Pathway to Freedom, Inc. It provides several ways to support various aspects of their ministry.
Donate to Serving USA
1 Click on the “Donate” button on the right of this page.
2 Use the “Select a campaign” dropdown menu to choose “Prisoners” which means your donation goes to the overall cause. Pathway to Freedom, Inc. is one of several ministries that may benefit from your donation.
3 Enter your donation amount and frequency of giving.
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