Coordinators
John Duckworth
John Ducksworth
EMI NY Regional Coordinator
John Ducksworth was born in Harlem, USA, and attended the New York City Public school system. He acquired an Associate Degree from Dutchess Community College, a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts from State University of New York, a Master’s Degree in Professional Studies from New York Theological Seminary with a concentration in counseling and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from John Jay College of Criminal Justice with a concentration in management and organization.
In 1985, John went to work for The Salvation Army in East Harlem, NY. After four years he elected to become a Salvation Army Officer and was admitted to the School for Officers Training. He graduated in 1990, ordained and commissioned to the rank of Lieutenant and later promoted to the rank of Captain. He has served as an Officer in Philadelphia, PA., Brooklyn, NY, Essex County, NJ and Boston, MA. After 17 years with the Salvation Army he resigned his ordination and commission.
He has provided leadership to Court based programs, Community Corrections, probation and juvenile justice agencies, private corrections corporations and social services agencies in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. His various roles have expanded from experiential to providing direct service, to middle and senior management positions, to government agency Executive Team. He is a licensed trainer in Restorative Justice Principles and Practices from International Institute of Restorative Practices (iirp), as well as trained at MAAT Training Institute for Restorative Justice, Washington, DC, Community Justice of Youth Institute, Chicago, Illinois, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis and the US Department of Justice National Institute of Corrections, Longmont, Colorado.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards, has been published and is married to Joan. They have two daughters, ages 14 and 10.
Toska Medlock Lee
Toska Medlock Lee
EMI/Calling All Crows Partnership Coordinator
Toska Medlock Lee is a cause marketing communications professional whose experience spans over 25 years of delivering exemplary work in the area of strategic partnerships, marketing communications, public relations, event and meeting management, community engagement and more. Medlock Lee has been called upon to drive innovative campaigns and movements between the private sector, government, faith and non-profit and entertainment industries with a focus on cause marketing, community outreach and organizing.
Her ministry marketing and public relations work spans to support efforts for the second largest denomination in the world; the United Methodist Church, including Strengthening the Black Church for the 21st Century, the Multi-Faith Initiative to End Mass Incarceration. Medlock Lee is also the lead consultant and content development specialist for the National Prison Summit on Mass Incarceration.
Her personal experiences, having been impacted by mass incarceration, have propelled her to the forefront with national and international ministries, pastors, bishops, elders and other leaders working to end the grind of mass incarceration and to engage local congregations around social justice, advocacy and reform initiatives.
Medlock Lee is the Owner and Chief Marketing Officer of The Myriad Group, a Dallas-based boutique agency. Medlock Lee is well-respected and known regionally and nationally for her humility, creativity and excellent delivery of services. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Texas at Arlington, and received her Certified Meeting Planner credentials more than 10 years ago (Convention Industry Council and CMP Board, Washington, D.C.)
Dr. Madeline McClenney
Dr. Madeline McClenney
EMI/Calling All Crows Partnership Coordinator
Dr. Madeline McClenney is the president and founder of Exodus Foundation.org. The mission of the foundation is to stop the flow of African-Americans to prison. She is a prison abolitionist and an ordained Baptist minister with over two decades of experience serving the church. She completed a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance, and a Master of Divinity Degree at Howard University in Washington, D.C. where she was an active advocate for the homeless. She continued her education at Duke University where she earned a Ph.D in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies in 2001, with minors in Women’s Studies and Islamic Law. Made possible by a Lilly Endowment grant, Dr. McClenney was trained in Restorative Practices by the International Institute of Restorative Practices. As an advocate for the underserved, she received a citation from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2001 for her humanitarian work in the community. She served as a sentencing specialist for ReEntry Inc. in Raleigh North Carolina while completing graduate studies. As a sentencing specialist, she went to the court at the time of sentencing to make a case for alternatives to prison for defendants.
In 1999, she founded Exodus Foundation.org, a national Christian faith based charity headquartered in Charlotte, N.C. which serves people of all faiths or no faith at all. Its banner program is a 24 hour re-entry mentoring program for adults known as the Red Sea Crossings Mentoring and Scholarship Program which provides personal growth coaching, career coaching, job placement, behavioral and street escape support and a host of therapeutic friendship interventions. In 2012, after a national search of over 300 agencies, the Open Society Institute and Frontlines Solutions recognized Exodus Foundation.org as one of eleven top organizations leading in black male achievement. Dr. McClenney has been a guest on several radio and television programs including the Roland Martin Show, Karen Hunter Program, Beverly Smith Show, and Larry Young Show. In 2018, she was a Visiting Professor at Duke Divinity School where she taught “Jesus and Moses on Death Row.”
Since the T&T Clark publication of her dissertation Recovering the Daughter’s Nakedness: A Formal Analysis of Israelite Kinship Terminology and the Internal Logic of Leviticus 18, Dr. McClenney has pivoted toward publishing about re-entry and mass incarceration. Dr. McClenney is one of several nationally known contributors to the 2011 Judsen Press release Ministry with Prisoners and Families: The Way Forward, a groundbreaking tool for pastors and congregations. In 2015, Judsen Press released Church On Purpose where Dr. McClenney’s chapter appeared entitled, “Believers Unchained: Why Christians Must Abolish Prisons or Stop Preaching the Gospel.”
Dr. McClenney was recognized by the Center for American Progress as “1 of 15 Faith Leaders to Watch in 2015.” In 2016, Exodus Foundation.org was awarded the Pride Magazine “Paths Out of Poverty” award for its work to increase upward mobility in Charlotte. In 2018, the nationally syndicated Café Mocha Radio presented Dr. McClenney with a “Salute Her Community Activist Award.” She is the chief strategist and creator of the “Time’s Up- Let Me Go!” Campaign and Rally, an effort to support presidential grants of clemency to federal prisoners with exceedingly harsh sentences. The rally was held in Washington, D.C. on October 12, 2016 in front of the White House with national sponsors and local advocates for prison and sentencing reform. Dr. McClenney designed and authored the Exodus Coalition Plan which is endorsed by 48 subject matter experts and agencies. It called for President Obama to release all nonviolent federally convicted and overcharged persons before he left office. On Juneteenth 2018, she launched the “National Let My People Go Preaching Tour” making stops in over 14 churches as she continues to tour.
Coordinators
Current partners include: American Baptist Home Mission Societies, American Civil Liberties Union, Columbia Theological Seminary, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Georgia, Criminal Justice Initiative Fund, Episcopal Diocese of Georgia, First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, Georgia Justice Project, Georgia Power, Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Atlanta, Jewish Council for Public Affairs, National Council of Churches, National Incarceration Association, National Religious Campaign Against Torture, New Georgia Project, Odyssey Impact, Progressive Women Candidates Forum, Public Square Media, Reform Georgia, Southern Center for Human Rights, Southern Education Foundation and The New Teacher Project.
The Multifaith Initiative to End Mass Incarceration embodies bridge-building across philosophical, political and theological divides. EMI seeks to position the faith community as a partner in existing efforts to strengthen voices, serve as a catalyst for the breakdown of polarizing influences in our country and build new avenues for engagement.
Odyssey Impact is a 501 (c) 3 non profit charitable organization. Our Tax Exempt ID is 13-3445556.
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