ROCKVILLE, Ind. — Inmates at the Rockville Correctional Facility in the Oakland City University Culinary Arts program got the chance to stray from their typical curriculum to make a kind gesture for the staff at Indiana State Prison.
Indiana State Prison is grieving the loss of one of their own, Lt. Eugene Lasco, who died after being attacked by an inmate on Feb. 21. To show their concern for Lasco's colleagues, the students in the program sent homemade cookies to Indiana State Prison staff.
OCU Culinary Arts instructor Alisha Myers and OCU Site Manager Kara Burgess allowed the students to step away from their regular lessons with approval from Rockville Correctional Facility Warden Julie Stout. Students made the cookies while staff drove the cookies from Rockville to Indiana State Prison in Michigan City.
According to Burgess, the ideas came from the students themselves.
“It's a small gesture, but the sentiment is one of support and concern and that’s what matters," she said.
OCU offers its Culinary Arts program at nine correctional facilities in the state:
- Rockville Correctional Facility
- Branchville Correctional Facility
- New Castle Correctional Facility
- Plainfield Correctional Facility
- Putnamville Correctional Facility
- Indiana Women's Prison
- Heritage Trail Correctional Facility
- Westville Correctional Facility
- Indiana State Prison
Students who complete the Culinary Arts program receive certifications in ServeSafe, as well as the title of certified kitchen cook through the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute.
