About Me

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 René Francisco Rodriguez

Living Meaningfully

Although I am limited by the boundaries of incarceration, I still aspire to live a life full of meaning and purpose.  The hurt I’ve caused is too painful to ever weaken my resolve to do better and be better.

The obstacles I face daily make it difficult to achieve my goals, but it is not impossible.  The moment I decided to change my life, first began with changing my mind.

By developing a growth mindset, impediments became nothing more than a nuisance.  I remain determined to move forward, always in a direction I can be proud of.

Living Intentionally

As someone serving life without parole, I am grateful for the opportunity I was given to study at and earn my Bachelor of Arts degree from Calvin University.  With the fine education I hold, I vow to give back in meaningful ways. 

Through mentoring, teaching adult literacy, holding writing workshops, and GED tutoring, I strive to help other men, whose shoes I was once in, lay down a strong foundation they can build on.  As someone who was once a functioning illiterate, I am fully invested in helping others take a holistic approach toward rehabilitation through education.

Higher education changed my life, and I strive to help others see its transformative powers to open a person’s mind to see the wonderful possibilities.

Living Aspirationally

I am a firm believer that education is the key to prevention, intervention, and a strong foundational tool to help people change and grow. 

My goal, both inside during my incarceration, and outside aspirationally, is to help strengthen people and communities in need. 

Although I was given life without parole at age 19, I still believe that someday I will reenter society and I look forward to continuing my work on the outside.

I live with an aching awareness that I can never fully restore the damage I’ve done, so my whole life is dedicated to helping others restore themselves and in turn this work helps restore my soul.