Teddy Toliver

I did very well in school because I was able to adapt to the learning environment stemmed from growing up in Turkwood housing projects. At the age of 11 I was introduced to drug dealing.

I started getting into trouble and going into the Juvenile justice system at 15. I really did well in school so the Juvenile system never tried to throw me away.  At 18, I began going to jail, though I was able to receive my high school diploma at the age of 20 from International Studies Academy High School with the help of Dr. James Hirabayashi. I did manage to get 18 months clean with Positive Directions Equals Change (PDEC) holding my hand, so it was imperative that I come back to PDEC to start on this new journey. Since “Getting Back to Basics”,

I have received my Associate degrees in Health Education and Liberal Arts with an emphasis in Social and Behavioral Sciences on May 24, 2018.  I am also received certificates for Community Mental Health Worker and Drug and Alcohol counseling. I am continuing my education at San Francisco State University while working at Health Right 360.

I am currently a member of Positive Direction Equals Change,  The San Francisco Reentry Council, Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice and The Men's Mentoring Movement.

My goal is to receive my Master’s degree in Mental Health or Public Health in 4 years. I cannot forget about Health Right 360, they helped me understand the term “Better” and what that looks like. Most importantly, I have been clean for over 4.5 years-“No wet or dry drugs”…………………

I took this training to  become a new leader advocate (to help former incarcerated people), t o become a new leader advocate (to help support Homicide Survivors) and I will work with families who have a loved one incarcerated and previously.