The grandson of Al Capone’s barber and a former Benedictine Monk, Pastor Smarto has pastored several congregations and was a college professor for years; as well as working professionally with prisoners and ex-offenders for over three decades. He is known nationally as a keynote conference speaker, speaking about restorative justice, prisoner aftercare, and the educational methods most effective with prisoners. He was honored to speak at the Prisoner Reentry White House Conference in November of ‘07.
Don’s research has led to meetings with judges and wardens in other countries including Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands, France, Belgium, England, Italy, Russia, Kenya, Canada, and Mexico. He was NGO Delegate to the United Nations Conference on the Treatment of Offenders in Milan, Italy in ‘85 and had meetings with President Ronald Reagan, Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger and Attorney General Edwin Meese.
As a nationwide consultant, Don Smarto has played a key role in the development of ex-offender programs. He is the Chairman of prison ministry collaborations in Texas and Pennsylvania, and has been a consultant to the State of Florida Juvenile Justice System in the area of mentoring.
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Quoted in the New York Times, Miami Herald, Chicago Tribune, L. A. Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Orlando Sentinel, Dallas Morning News, Denver Post, and the Washington Post about gangs, school shootings, prison conditions, and prison reform, Don Smarto has appeared on hundreds of radio and television shows.
His professional experiences have included: Juvenile and Adult Probation Officer, Assistant Superintendent of a Maximum Security Facility, Director of an Adolescent Offender Drug Treatment Program (featured nationally on NBC News), and Director of an Ex-Offender Transition Program (which included mentoring/counseling/education).
Don trained probation officers for four years at Sangamon State University (Illinois), and taught criminal justice courses at Wheaton College and Trinity University (Illinois) for twelve years. He has authored 16 books. Three of which are about restorative justice that became college text books. Smarto has also authored national magazine articles and contributed to several reference works in psychology and sociology.
As member of the American Correctional Association (ACA) for twenty-seven years, Don frequently presents conference workshops. He is a past member of the Fraternal Order of Police, and has received numerous awards.
Don Smarto also ministered for years with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and served on Illinois Governor Edgar's Gang Task Force, Attorney General Ryan's Council on Child Abuse, and the DuPage County Board's Blue Ribbon Commission on Jail Overcrowding (author of the final report).
As a leader, this man of God has been the President of three national organizations including the Institute of Prison Ministries, where he led a research team of sociologists studying programs affecting recidivism. He has visited over 1200 prisons in 12 countries and has ministered with Chuck Colson’s Prison Fellowship.
Don Smarto has also hosted a daily Dallas radio show called Parenting Today's Youth with 29,000 listeners each day. For more information, go find some of his articles at youthdirect.org and check out his multiple books on Amazon.
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