On March 21, two Kosovo prison engineers—Teuta Zogiani Shehu and Avdi Sallahu—hosted by Department of State Corrections Advisor Richard Cherwinski and a translator, toured SCI Phoenix to learn about construction aspects of the PA DOC's latest state-of-the-art prison.
The prison access began with a meet-and-greet in the superintendent's conference room that was followed by a brief overview of the prison, including the inmate population, number of employees and facility budget of $148 million.
The group had already visited several federal prisons and indicated that their tour would be more construction-related than mission specific due to the work they do in Kosovo. The group said that most of their questions would be about infrastructure and utilities and other issues that arise as they toured the prison.
"We thank you for your hospitality, because Kosovo's prison system is just now developing, and we look forward to gaining knowledge that we can take back," said Teuta Zogiani Shehu, head of the Kosovo Engineering Unit.
The tour included stops at the visiting room, visiting room processing, inmate reception, the control center and its CCTV system, medical, psychological observation cells, the special observation assessment unit, an inmate dining hall, kitchen, Correctional Industries' laundry, a general population unit, program services building and the chapel, educational/vocational areas and the gymnasium/activities area.