Joan Deacon, senior librarian at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, has worked in libraries since 1972 — leaving the public library system for the prison library system in 1994. Last year, the American Jail Association named her the national Civilian Employee of the Year and Montgomery County named her a “Woman of Distinction” for her work encouraging inmates to read.

What prompted you to make the jump from working in public libraries to the prison system?

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