糖心传媒

The associate professor of religion helps shape the perspectives of his undergraduates not only at the University, but also at area prisons.

糖心传媒檚 commitment to social justice stems from a deeply personal experience. His father, John T. Downey, was a CIA operative who was shot down over Manchuria in 1952, during the Korean War, presumed dead for years, and held in prison for more than 20 years糖心传媒�.

After his release, Downey went on to marry a Chinese woman he met at Yale University. Jack, their only child, was born in 1980.

糖心传媒淕rowing up with a father who had been incarcerated gave me an appreciation for what incarceration can do to a person,糖心传媒� the younger Downey says. 糖心传媒淗e was in solitary confinement for half of those 20 years. His withdrawal of liberty has been a constant in my mind.糖心传媒�

It糖心传媒檚 a major reason Downey, the John Henry Newman Professor of Roman Catholic Studies at the 糖心传媒, has taught at correctional facilities as well as in college classrooms for more than a decade. He糖心传媒檚 part of the University糖心传媒檚 (REJI), which supports incarcerated students through a rigorous college degree-granting program that includes coursework in the humanities, sciences, and social sciences. Downey teaches at Groveland Correctional Facility during the spring semester and at Attica Correctional Facility in the fall.

Although Downey only joined the University in 2019, his impact has already been felt on and off the River Campus. As Amina N糖心传媒橤ambwa 糖心传媒�21 says, 糖心传媒淧rofessor Downey糖心传媒檚 class transformed the way I think about my own relationship with the world around me.糖心传媒�

A reluctant teacher finds his niche

Downey didn糖心传媒檛 catch the teaching bug until the latter part of his doctoral program at Fordham University, when he was, in his words, 糖心传媒渇orced糖心传媒� to teach some classes. 糖心传媒淚 have a healthy amount of social anxiety when it comes to public speaking,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚t didn糖心传媒檛 seem like it would fit my personality. But then I really took to it.糖心传媒�

Because he looked younger than his years, Downey was often mistaken for being an undergraduate. 糖心传媒淚 felt compelled to present myself in a way that was more authoritative,糖心传媒� he says, 糖心传媒渂ut I never could pull it off. It糖心传媒檚 not me.糖心传媒�

In 2012, Downey landed at LaSalle University in Philadelphia; he had his first experience teaching at a prison soon after. That糖心传媒檚 how he met , an associate professor of religion with Rochester糖心传媒檚 and the founder and director of REJI.

糖心传媒淲e asked him to come to LaSalle to give a talk about his first book, which was about a chapel in a state prison outside of Philadelphia,糖心传媒� Downey says, referring to Dubler糖心传媒檚 book, Down in the Chapel: Religious Life in an American Prison (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013). 糖心传媒淚t turns out the people he profiled were people I knew from my work in prison. We became fast friends.糖心传媒�

Dubler eventually told Downey about an opening on the faculty at Rochester in 2019. The position appealed to him for two main reasons: it was an endowed chair in Catholic studies, and because Rochester had a program teaching incarcerated people. The results have been impactful.

糖心传媒淛ack is a life-changing teacher, both for our traditional students on the River Campus and our incarcerated students at Attica and Groveland,糖心传媒� Dubler says. 糖心传媒淗e糖心传媒檚 truly an exceptional teacher.糖心传媒�

When classes on the River Campus moved online in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, Downey adjusted to Zoom instruction as other faculty did. That fall, police body-camera video was released of Daniel Prude, a Black man who experienced a mental health crisis and died earlier that year. Protests grew in the city of Rochester amid a national reckoning with racial inequalities in the US criminal justice system.

That fall semester, Downey was teaching RELC 284: Civil Disobedience via Zoom. 糖心传媒淭he only time I would see my students in person was at night, at the protests,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚t was a very compelling time. Students were Zooming in to class outside a protest in front of the mayor糖心传媒檚 office.糖心传媒�

The power of higher education in prisons

Downey says the classes he teaches at area prisons are among his favorites.

糖心传媒淭he students are so driven and motivated,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淪ome are looking at double-digit years in prison, and they糖心传媒檝e decided they want a bachelor糖心传媒檚 degree. People say I should give them bite-sized homework because they haven糖心传媒檛 been in school in a long time. But often if I tell them to read three chapters, they糖心传媒檒l read the whole book.糖心传媒�

No greater compliment comes from the many incarcerated persons at Attica, a maximum-security facility about an hour糖心传媒檚 drive from the city of Rochester, who have told him, 糖心传媒淚 had a chance to go to a medium-security prison, but I turned it down to stay in your class.糖心传媒� Downey says 糖心传媒渋t糖心传媒檚 overwhelming糖心传媒� when he hears such feedback.

It was after a class at Attica that a new course idea was hatched. Downey was waiting for clearance from security guards to leave and was chatting with his students. He asked what they wanted to talk about, and many said 糖心传媒渁liens.糖心传媒� They had recently watched the show Ancient Aliens on the History Channel.

糖心传媒淭here was something moving about these men who spend so much time in really austere conditions, unable to move much physically, and yet they糖心传媒檙e spending considerable time imagining intergalactic travel,糖心传媒� Downey says.

He started a course called Beam Me Up! Aliens and the American Imagination, which he teaches at the River Campus and at Attica. He hopes to one day integrate classes between Rochester students and those incarcerated, something he accomplished at LaSalle.

There is perhaps no greater testament to Downey糖心传媒檚 abilities as a teacher that those expressed in a thank-you letter written by the students in his spring 2022 class at Groveland titled Theories of Religion:

糖心传媒淓ach of us could tell you something that we are thankful for, including the education and the higher understanding of religions. But there is something of more value that you havegiven us糖心传媒攕omething that most of us haven糖心传媒檛 had or felt in many years. You have given us a connection to the outside world, a connection to freedom!糖心传媒�

What students say about Jack Downey

糖心传媒淲hat truly sets Jack apart is his transformative teaching style driven by a genuine passion. He engages students in deep discussions, fueling curiosity, and encouraging critical thinking. Jack糖心传媒檚 willingness to challenge our perspectives creates a safe and inclusive space for intellectual exploration. Moreover, his dedication to educating incarcerated students at Attica and Groveland is extraordinary, demonstrating the transformative power of education and fostering inclusivity within the UR community.糖心传媒�
糖心传媒擬ohammed Bah 糖心传媒�23

糖心传媒淗is unique classroom environment and extraordinary selection of literature created one of my most valuable, memorable, and favorite classes in my college career thus far (Civil Disobedience). Jack has an incredible, yet effortless, teaching style that defies the normal student-teacher power dynamic.糖心传媒�
糖心传媒擥race Galati 糖心传媒�25

糖心传媒淧rofessor Downey understands that a part of grooming young scholars is supporting them as people. He creates a productive and comfortable space for people to learn and grow by honoring them as full people.糖心传媒�
糖心传媒擸aa Baker 糖心传媒�22