Communication Workshop

Initiatives for Criminal & Restorative Justice
PSFA story on the Communication Workshops


Communication Workshops at the San Diego County Sheriff's Department Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility

The United States is a world leader in incarceration. The prison system impacts millions of lives, including the lives of people with incarcerated family members, through systems designed to isolate and separate people. Communication education and opportunities to develop communication skills can have an important positive impact on the ability to communicate needs effectively, form healthy relationships, construct community with others, and act as advocates. The Institute for Dialogue and Social Justice, situated within the School of Communication at San Diego State University, has partnered with San Diego County Sheriff's Department Las Colinas Women’s Detention & Reentry Center.

Since 2016, faculty and graduate students have taught workshops that develop communication skills, allowing women to communicate more effectively in public speaking settings, when meeting with parole officers and Child Protective Services, in job interviews, and in interpersonal situations with children, friends, and family. The Communication Workshop program aims to provide women at Las Colinas with the chance to study and practice vital communication concepts and skills, while giving graduate students the opportunity to grow as scholars, teachers, and activists. Since resuming face-to-face instruction in 2022, approximately 45 students have participated in the Communication Workshops.

To get involved or learn more about the Communication Workshop at San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Las Colinas Detention and Re-entry Facility contact Dr. Tiffany Dykstra-DeVette: tdykstradevette@sdsu.edu

Contact Us

Would you like to share your research and/or activism related to dialogue and social justice with a larger community?  Fill out the Google Form to become an affiliated member of the Institute or contact us via email: comm.idjs@sdsu.edu