Rev. Albert Ray Dancy went from being a troubled youth who served four years in state prison for armed robbery in the mid-1970’s to serving troubled youths in Norwalk, CT for 11 years as Executive Director of Serving All Vessels Equally (SAVE).
Rev. Dancy was born in Alexandria, Virginia and raised in New Haven, Connecticut. After graduating high school in 1968 he attended the Yale University Transitional Year Program (also known as TYP). Upon completion, he floundered for a number of years working at odds jobs, performing in community theatre on the west coast and eventually serving time in prison.
While in prison, Rev. Dancy earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Science from the University of New Haven. Thirteen years later he was hired as a prison chaplain at the Bridgeport Community Corrections Center in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Rev. Dancy has held numerous management and information technology positions in the private sector; including General Electric, Peachtree Software, and Mellon Bank.
In 2007, he became the Executive Director of SAVE, a non-profit community development organization. SAVE’s vision for Norwalk youth is to see each one of them grow up to become successful adults who are free of involvement with the justice system and have a positive impact on their communities. It serves Norwalk youth, ages 14 -24, by providing advocacy and programming to help them achieve success in school, avoid contact with the criminal justice system and engage in positive community service. Under his leadership SAVE has trained and mentored hundreds of youth using an emerging best practice program – PEN OR PENCIL – a highly motivating and mentor-rich experience for teaching life skills, work skills and leadership skills.
Presently, Albert attends the University of New of Haven, where he is pursuing a Masters in Criminal Justice. Since 2012, he has been the managing partner at Ascendancy, LLC. Ascendancy is a privately owned consulting firm that provides grant writing, capacity building, and technical assistance to Fairfield County non-profits.
Rev. Dancy currently resides in Darien, Connecticut with his wife, Robin.