Staff

CAIC’s paid organizing staff is made up of individuals directly affected by incarceration and most by solitary confinement in New York’s prisons and jails.

VICTOR PATE – NY-CAIC Campaign Organizer – Victor is formerly Incarcerated and has been engaged in numerous Criminal Justice Reform Campaigns as a volunteer since being released such as Drop The Rock, Raise The Age, Domestic Violence, Parole, Release Aging People In Prison as well as being an active member and volunteer with The New York State Prisoner Justice Network, Challenging Incarceration, and The National Action Network NYC Chapter where he is a founding member of The Second Chance Committee. His organizing/volunteer experience allows him to utilize these skills as a paid organizer with The Campaign For Alternatives To Isolated Confinement which has been successful in getting the HALT Bill (3080-B S.4784-A) passed in the Assembly this past 2018 legislative session.

CYNTHIA WILLIAMS – Hudson Valley/Central NY Organizer – is a multi-discipline professional, who has worked many years as a Teacher, Community Banker, Operations Executive and a contract Paralegal. She has her own experience with the criminal justice system, and has found her voice in Advocacy and currently is an Advocate for Social Justice.  She is a 2015 Beyond the Bars of Justice Fellow at the Center for Justice at Columbia University. In August 2017 she joined the NY Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement as an Organizer in the Hudson Valley Region. She has been instrumental in galvanizing grass roots support through public education at events such as academic conferences, community forums, and collaborative joint multi-issue/multi-campaign actions.

DOUG VAN ZANDT – Albany and North Country Organizer – For the past year, Doug has served as a regional organizer for the NY Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement (CAIC). He is based in Albany. Several years ago Doug became involved in criminal justice and mass incarceration reforms after his 17-year old son, who suffered from a severe mental illness, was sent to prison. He single handedly built a replica of a solitary confinement cell so that the public can experience the horror of this punishment. Doug is also active in the Capital Area Against Mass Incarceration (CAAMI) and Parole Watch in the Albany area. Prior to these endeavors, Doug worked spent many years working as an aerospace engineer and commercial pilot. He also served as an officer in the US Navy.

JEROME WRIGHT – Western NY CAIC Organizer – Jerome is a returning citizen who spent 30 years in prison. Since his release, he worked at: Back to Basics Outreach Ministries with their Youth Intervention Program where he eventually became Program Director; the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) as Site Supervisor and Life Enrichment Class facilitator, training, teaching and supervising people on parole and probation on work assignments; providing mentoring, tutoring and behavior modification training to at risk youth in Buffalo and Rochester. At his church, Elim Christian Fellowship, where he was ordained as a Deacon in 2012, he continues to do community outreach/advocacy, and serves as a facilitator/trainer in the Restorative Justice initiative.