Parole To PhD: Noel Vest

Sometimes hope comes from a very unlikely place. In the case of long-time Clark County resident Noel Vest, hope and redemption came to him during a time in prison. While many see prison as rock bottom and perhaps an end to any normal life after getting out, Vest saw this as an end to running as a habitual offender. After living many years under a cloud of drug addiction, he was sentenced to a considerable amount of time in prison. This was a wake-up call for him and a time to work on his resurrection.

Going to prison was a time to take a hard look at the underlying cause of much of his legal issues, Vest had a substance abuse problem. Between the drug treatment, the prison afforded him and the time to focus on improving his life via educational programming, Vest started down a new path. This path would take him from a felony conviction to a PhD. program.

Vest grew up in Clark County, and many in the area remember him from his years at Evergreen High School. Like many teens, Vest did his share of partying and experimenting with drugs during high school and in the years after. There did not seem to be much out of the ordinary during those years.

It wasn’t until a few years later that the drugs started to impact his daily life. He has a problem, and things were only getting worse. He was able to function until an especially hard break up pushed him into a deep depression. He was using drugs at this point to self-medicate, and it was no longer working.

When Vest talks about his recovery, he is careful to explain his family’s role in the overall process. They have always been beyond supportive, but there were times even a well-meaning family was not enough. His family over the years tried everything to get him help, but until he was ready for the support that did not seem to matter.

The role of family supports is something Vest speaks in great detail about as he now leads others through their recovery. He is lucky to have family that never gave up and figured out their lectures were not always listened to. He made it a point to explain that recovery can only happen when the individual is ready and has a sense of hope for the future.

At one point in his addiction, Vest turned to some less than legal ways to support his costly drug habit. While many who grew up with Vest remembered the out-going, fun classmate, residents in Clark County saw another side of him as he was suddenly a wanted man.

When a picture of him taken by a bank surveillance camera was published in the local paper, Vest knew things had gotten bad. He was on the run, and it was not long until he was arrested. With his photo plastered all over Vancouver, Vest ran to Las Vegas.

During the time that he was using drugs the heaviest, Vest shared that he had been arrested in Clark County, Washington, Clark County, Nevada and several counties in Oregon. His most significant arrest came after leaving Vancouver to avoid arrest there and ending up in even more trouble in Nevada.

After several minor arrests, the problem in Nevada took things to the next level. Vest was now a felon and going to spend some time in prison.

As terrifying as the idea of prison is for most people, this is actually what saved Vest. He found his first glimpse of sobriety behind bars. He also re-discovered a love of learning as he fought to stay clean.

Vest credits the supports from recovery type groups like AA in prison for helping him find a new path for his life. A crucial part of his prison time was spent learning to live without drugs and also connecting with others who were fighting this same addiction. He also was lucky enough to have access to college classes during his time in prison via the College of Southern Nevada.

Education and fellowship with others who share similar experiences is a theme Vest has carried beyond his time in prison. Since getting out of prison in 2009, Vest committed to helping others struggling with addiction. This started as he continued his new found love of learning via classes at the local community college.

Vest credits the support of his family as a critical part of his new career path. A considerable part of his transition out of prison was going to college. His AA degree was a continuation of the credits he earned while finishing his sentence in Nevada.

After finishing up the AA degree, Vest went on to graduate from a four-year college. He is also taking his education one step further as a doctoral student. This type of program is extremely rigorous, but this has not stopped Vest from also dedicating time to helping others.

Coming out of prison and being able to go into a college program was extremely important to Vest. He saw this luxury was not always an option due to some legal constraints in Washington state. Instead of being discouraged by the barriers placed for those who were in recovery, Vest set out to change the laws.

It was Vest’s efforts and several others that helped pass the new “Fair Chances in Higher Education” bill. This bill opens up access to college programs to those with criminal histories as a way to become contributing members of society.

This type of bill is extremely new, before it passing in Washington state only two other states have the same kind of law. Vest found the drive to create this type of bill in his home state after attending a conference in Texas about similar laws there.

The new law is something Vest sees as being a legacy in both Washington and Clark County. Vest has also stepped forward to help his college campus and its satellite locations further recovery supports on campus as well.

His efforts go well beyond just trying to find his path in life. He has said all along that the most significant part of his recovery was the day he saw hope for the future. He is using his new voice as a way to share this hope with others.