Kris Steele is a familiar name for most Oklahomans. As former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, he was seen on the evening news, in the papers, online and everywhere in between. Yet, his position of power and influence has not defined his life. Rather, that role helped him discover a purpose for which he now strives \u2013 one with a vision to better the lives of individuals and the future of Oklahoma.<\/p>\n
Feeling called to pursue a career in ministry, Steele determined OBU would provide the best training to prepare for that calling. In 1997, he earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in religion from the University.<\/p>\n
He uses his ministry training and experience along with the
\nknowledge he gained as a legislator to serve as the executive director of The Education and Employment Ministry (TEEM), a nonprofit organization dedicated to breaking cycles of incarceration and poverty through education, personal development and job readiness training. TEEM helps former prisoners discover their talents and matches their skills and abilities with employment opportunities that benefit the employee, employer and entire community.<\/p>\n
Steele became motivated to serve in this capacity after reading a state audit which revealed Oklahoma\u2019s incarceration rates were the highest in the nation. According to the audit, Oklahoma has more crimes punishable by incarceration than other states.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a result, spending for corrections had become our state\u2019s second fastest growing expenditure,\u201d Steele said. \u201cEvery year we would add to the list of crimes punishable by incarceration and\/or we would add to the minimum length of time a person would have to serve once incarcerated. I began to study the return on investment for all of this money being spent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steele also took a careful look at successful re-entry programs for former prisoners in other states and their efforts to increase public safety. He researched crime rates, for both violent and non-violent offenders, male and female incarceration rates and the likelihood for released inmates to return to prison.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I realized is that when we incarcerate a non-violent offender, even for a short period of time, and we fail to address root issues such as substance abuse, mental illness, lack of education, lack of job training, lack of basic life skills \u2026 statistically that person will transition back into our community at a greater risk to public safety than even before they were incarcerated,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
This revelation placed a burden on him and instilled a passionate desire to help turn around this pressing issue within Oklahoma. In November 2012, as his time in the legislature came to an end, he began serving as the executive director at TEEM and was charged with addressing the issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think there is such a thing as a spare Oklahoman, and the fact that we would exclude somebody or throw them away just because they\u2019ve stumbled is not okay with me,\u201d he said. \u201cI tell people all the time that I\u2019m very thankful that I\u2019m not judged by my worst moment in life, and I don\u2019t think it\u2019s at all fair that we judge someone who\u2019s been impacted by incarceration by his or her worst moment in life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although he believes that violating the law calls for consequences, he also believes releasing incarcerated individuals back into the community without a clear path to success is problematic.<\/p>\n
TEEM has developed a re-entry service model that helps people break the incarceration cycle. Elements of the program include basic education, job training and mentoring. TEEM case managers also connect participants with housing, substance abuse treatment, transportation and health care. A legal aid attorney helps them through legal issues to identify and remove as many barriers as possible before they transition into the community, and job placement coordinators teach basic computer skills and interviewing techniques.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you see hope renewed within a person who is living in defeat and the person comes back to life and understands they have a future and a new beginning, it\u2019s a pretty remarkable thing,\u201d Steele said.<\/p>\n
All TEEM participants are presented the gospel through Bible studies led by volunteers and board members. Those looking for a church home are connected with a local congregation focused on discipleship and development.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe faith component also comes into play with the way we as a staff conduct ourselves,\u201d Steele said. \u201cWe do our best to work and operate in a spirit of grace, mercy, forgiveness and love. Regardless of what a participant\u2019s beliefs may be, they will get the same measure of love that we give anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steele credits his OBU education with preparing him for the challenges of his career.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy time at OBU was enlightening and enjoyable,\u201d he said. \u201cIt provided an understanding of the importance of public service and established a foundation to address societal issues in positive, productive ways. My OBU experience reinforced the value of perseverance, hard work and collaboration with others.\u201d<\/p>\n
A calling comes when God reveals a specific purpose for someone\u2019s life. Kris Steele heeded his calling and has committed himself to a life of purpose, full of love and service, for Oklahomans in need of support as they work to rebuild their lives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Restoring Hope…One Oklahoman at a Time Kris Steele is a familiar name for most Oklahomans. As former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, he was seen on the evening news, in the papers, online and everywhere in between. Yet, his position of power and influence has not defined his life. Rather, that role helped […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2342,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":""},"categories":[135,86],"tags":[159,160],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/steele.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7BMz3-x4","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2050"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2050"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2050\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2507,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2050\/revisions\/2507"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2342"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.okbu.edu\/obumagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}