Here in WA state, when our legislators think about corrections it is
either to lower costs or to stop recidivism.  

 

In the 1980s, they decided that inmates got too many perks and not
enough punishment, so they eliminated inmate access to community college
courses (except for a few vocational courses related to  inmate jobs).  

 

It turned out to be throwing out the baby with the bathwater, since the
inmates who took philosophy courses that dealt with ethics, citizen
responsibility, the rule of law, the greater good, etc were very
unlikely to return to prison.  

 

Certainly these inmates had better skills and were more employable on
release, but lifelong correctional educators were convinced the subject
matter of right and wrong made a big difference.  Of course, this kind
of opportunity would be wasted on an inmate who was sociopathic, etc.

 

Have any of you seen or heard of similar impacts as a result of classes
that focus on more than employability?

 

 

 

From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David J. Rosen
Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2008 6:48 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 907] Re: Corrections to Community Education

 

Colleagues,

 

We have only two more days to devote to this topic. I hope everyone who
wants to say something related to the topic will. I am glad that some
participants who thought they would only read have decided to contribute
to the discussion.  I hope others will, too.

 

Now that all four of our guests are with us I hope that we can hear all
their perspectives on some of the questions that have not yet been fully
answered. (See a list of these below).

 

Thanks, Kiel, for opening up the question of transition from corrections
education to college. I would like to hear from our guest experts, and
others, about what has been effective in helping released inmates
transition to post-secondary education. 

 

I know that many years ago there were federal subsidies for inmates to
take college courses. (I was an Academic Dean at a small college that
had an MA program that served inmates and that was paid for entirely by
federal financial aid.)  I believe those days are gone, but wonder if
there are college courses of any kind offered to inmates with the goal
of having them enroll as on-campus or online students once they are
released.

 

I would also like to hear from more community-based organizations, if
there are some represented here, with their perspectives on what works
in transitioning inmates to community-based education. (Thanks John
Gordon for the thoughtful and detailed answers you have provided about
what the Fortune Society in New York City does, an inspiration for many
other community-based programs.)

 

Here are some of the questions that have not yet been fully addressed
yet by our guests or by other participants:

 

1. When an inmate who has been in an education program inside a state
corrections institution or county jail is released, what needs to happen
for him or her to connect to and stick with a community-based education
program?

2. Are you aware of any exemplary models of connections between inside
education and community based education programs? Can you tell us about
them?

3. What can community-based education programs do to partner with
corrections education programs that release inmates back to their
communities?

4. What do you see as the main differences between career educational
programs through public or private post-secondary institutions and
community education programs?  How do these differences account for the
success or failure of students in these programs?

5.  What spectrum of crimes have these students committed?  What are the
most common?  How does the severity of the crime relate to their
outcomes in community educational programs and subsequent attempts to
find employment...or does it?

6. What are the significant research findings on the topic of successful
transitions from prison education to community education programs?  What
are best practices that might have been discovered from the research.

7. Are the "soft skills" being taught (in corrections and
community-based education programs), such things as attitude,
attendance, punctuality, honesty, dependability, teamwork, listening
skills......?

8. Could you give examples of state or county corrections institutions
and community-based institutions where personal relationships have been
built and sustained over time so that a referral phone call or an email
about an inmate who is being released results in a warm welcome to the
community-based education program, perhaps as part of a number of
community services (housing, employment, health  care, counseling)
provided on release. If so, what enables these relationships? What
sustains them? What undermines them?

9. The House and Senate have passed the Second Chance Act. Could you
describe what provisions this important bill includes.

10. Are there good examples of collaborations or partnerships between
corrections and community education programs where they both use the
same online learning, videos, or software. If so, could you describe
these programs?

11. In a previous discussion here on corrections education we learned
that there is at least one corrections program where inmates can --
under careful supervision by teachers -- use the Internet.  Are there
others? Is this a trend?

12. Are there examples where corrections education programs have taken
online options (online software or education web sites for example) and
brought them inside as stand-alone (not Internet connected) options?

13. What happens in the prisons and jail when the inmate cannot read?
Do you

have programs to address this issue?

 

Are there other unanswered questions?

 

 

David J. Rosen

Special Topics Discussion Moderator

djrosen at comcast.net

 

 

 

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