Why Prison Education Matters
A View from Inside
This article is from Dollars & Sense: Real World Economics, available at http://www.dollarsandsense.org
This article is from the
July/August 2023 issue.
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Our humble abode, Marion Correctional Institution, is a blocky, four-story concrete castle surrounded by layers of fencing and razor wire that was built in the mid-nineties. With a minimum sentence of 42 years, I’ve been the property of the state for almost eight years, and a resident of Marion Correctional Institution for more than five. During this time, I feel as though I’ve gained valuable insight into how our state prison systems repeatedly fail society, the people in its custody, and even the system’s own people, who are relied upon so heavily to keep this perverse machine running. Prisons are not designed to be good for prisoners or society, and it is the lack of public awareness about this fact that allows the current system to exist. For too long, the conventional “wisdom” has been that if we simply lock away offenders, then all will be well; in reality, roughly 95% of incarcerated people are expected to return to society someday. Although this decades-long policy stance still holds strong, there are advocates on both sides of the aisle fighting to change this detrimental rhetoric. But as it currently stands, very little is being done by the institutions that run our prison system to warrant much, if any, positive change that’s actually conducive to prisoner rehabilitation.
What Counts as Rehabilitation?
If the average citizen was asked what they believe constituted prisoner rehabilitation, how do you think they would answer? What would your answer be? What does prisoner rehabilitation even mean? Well, as a prisoner, and someone who plans to return to society someday, I feel that it can be best defined as a path designed to prepare and equip incarcerated individuals for a normal life back out in society through classes and training—knowledge—with an emphasis on strengthening their moral compass.
Many states have passed laws confirming their commitment to rehabilitating their prisoner populations. These states’ statutes list possible ways to complete such an objective, with education being the primary solution. Based on my own interactions, a poll of my peers would likely produce a similar answer, an assumption backed by a 2019 report by New America that showed 69% of incarcerated people aspire to enroll in postsecondary education. It may come as a surprise to many members of the public just how much of the prison population is eager to better themselves. North Carolina, the state in which I am incarcerated, has a statute simply titled: “Purpose of Sentencing.” The statute declares that one of its purposes is “to assist the offender toward rehabilitation and restoration to the community as a lawful citizen.” Sounds great. However, its implementation is either weak or nonexistent. Inside prison, quality educational opportunities are few and far between. GED programs are the most commonly available—they are widely accessible and beneficial for those who need them. Unfortunately, opportunities stop there at most institutions when it comes to education for prisoners with longer sentences or convictions for violent offenses. According to the Council of State Governments Justice Center, in 2020 there were 31 states offering either career and technical education training, associate degree programming, or bachelor’s degree programming. Of those, only 17 states offered all three, while also determining the nature of these offerings based primarily on local labor market needs, employer feedback, and successful employment outcomes—instead of the level of interest among prisoners in these programs.
When pursuing a degree in prison—outside of a facility’s own programs, if available—often the only option is a correspondence program, which can cost well into the thousands of dollars. Although access to Pell Grants was reinstated for the incarcerated in 2020, they’re given to the colleges and universities themselves instead of directly to the students. This means that potential students must apply to a select list of eligible schools, most of which do not offer degree paths. Further, to participate in a correspondence degree program, a proctor is required to administer any exams at the facility. It is important that degree pathways are available to the incarcerated so that those wishing to pursue higher learning—and higher paying jobs upon release—can do so without having to simply settle on whatever limited options the state allows. It’s my belief that the more a person can invest in themselves, the less risk they run of returning to their old lifestyle upon release.
And there are yet more barriers to pursuing a degree in prison. For example, I applied and was accepted, even received my student I.D. number, to Adams State University in Colorado for a Bachelor of Science-Business Administration/General Business Emphasis correspondence degree program. I believed that I was on the right path to furthering my education and spending my time incarcerated wisely. The catch, as I soon discovered, is that the North Carolina prison system is contracted with selected state universities to provide proctors for their classes only. “So why not complete a degree through your prison by participating in approved classes?” Some might ask.
Opportunities such as those are often reserved for inmates with short sentences or nonviolent convictions, as if the system rather bluntly announced that incarcerated people with longer sentences or violent crimes are not worth rehabilitating, or at least not yet. Twenty-five states currently have laws limiting participation in programs providing marketable skills and credentials based on an individual’s sentence length. Eleven states restrict participation based on the type of crime committed, and 16 states limit participation based solely on custody level. (A prisoner’s custody level is based on a risk assessment and determines the type of facility they’re housed at and what privileges they’re permitted. The levels are: Close, Medium, and Minimum custody.)
In North Carolina, there is literally a general statute titled: “Educational Facilities and Programs for Selected Inmates.” “Selected” being the key word. The first section of this statute states:
The Department of Adult Corrections is authorized to take advantage of aid available from any source in establishing facilities and developing programs to provide inmates of the state prison system with such academic and vocational and technical education as seems most likely to facilitate the rehabilitation of these inmates and their return to free society with attitudes, knowledge, and skills that will provide their prospects of becoming law-abiding and self-supporting citizens...
Imagine if such a simple and logical creed was truly adopted, and such standards were actually implemented across the prison system. Unfortunately, these educational facilities and programs are so rare that their mere existence is mythical in nature to those of us with longer sentences, certain offenses, or at high-security facilities such as Marion Correctional Institution.
The very next section of statute goes on to say that the Department of Adult Corrections:
...shall give priority to meeting needs of inmates who are less than twenty-one years of age when received in the prison system with a sentence or sentences under which they will be held for not less than six months nor more than five years...
The education programs through contracted state universities, i.e., the UNC Outreach program in North Carolina, has a section listed on its application wanting to know if the applicant has 10 years or less remaining on their sentence. Personally, I have heard tell of only one instance where someone with more than 10 years was accepted into the program. This particular program starts the student out with one or two entry-level college classes such as ENG100 or MATH10. Upon completion, the student is then allowed to participate in more classes once it’s been determined that they’re not going to waste resources by dropping out. I don’t believe that this is a bad approach, however, the courses are limited and do not follow a degree pathway. Nevertheless, I applied back in August of 2022, along with a compelling letter as to why I should be considered for acceptance. The application review date of April 15, 2023 has come and gone. It is now June and I’ve yet to hear anything back. I guess I got my answer.
Ironically, as I’m writing this, a flyer was posted in the common area advertising a barbering program. There was an excited energy in the air as people stood around signing up for the class. In my years as a prisoner, this is the first time I have ever seen a trade/skill class advertised like this. It is wonderful, of course, to see more classes being offered, but to my dismay, and to that of many others, at the bottom of the flyer in bold text was the stipulation that offenders applying for the program had to have between 36 and 72 months remaining on their sentences. And since the program was taking place at a medium-custody facility, applicants had to have all the appropriate amount of custody points as well. (Custody points are initially based on the person’s crimes, then mostly on their behavior while in prison, i.e., infractions and time between infractions. The custody levels are close, medium, and minimum.) As an example of the ratio of offenders who might be eligible for the program: out of my 20-man cellblock, only two were eligible.
Marion Correctional boasts a population of around 700 close-custody prisoners. It is so frustrating that opportunities such as this are outside the grasp of incarcerated individuals who happen to have longer sentences or are in more restrictive circumstances than their peers. When there are inmates being assigned to the barber jobs in prison who have never cut hair a day in their lives, let alone owned a pair of trimmers, it makes no sense why the system wouldn’t want someone to learn a trade that they could apply while still in prison. A skill that could give the person a feeling of purpose and worth in an environment designed to dehumanize them. A craft they could hone and master over the years, and then put to good use upon release.
Tablets for Education and Communication
I cannot discuss education in the prison system without mentioning the roll out of tablets, although their accessibility varies greatly from state to state and prison to prison. In 2020, it was reported that only 14 states offered coursework through tablets. Marion Correctional received tablets in September 2021 from Global Telecommunications (GTL), a company that provides prison services. Due to the facility’s thick, rebar concrete walls, it was necessary to drill holes through the walls to run conduit and data lines into each individual cellblock so that a router could be installed in each cell near the 20-foot-tall ceiling, allowing the tablets to operate wirelessly.
These tablets are assigned to a cell, not an individual offender. We cannot simply buy our own tablets at the canteen, and we are financially responsible for any damage incurred. The allotted window for use is between 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. The typical battery life is around six hours depending on one’s level of activity, i.e., listening to music and browsing the news at the same time, so it is important to check the battery life when you first receive it in the morning, otherwise staff will not recharge it until later that night after they’ve all been turned in. An offender can add funds to their tablet through the canteen, or their family, friends, or anyone, really, can deposit funds through GTL’s app, called GettingOut. The presence of tablets in prison is an absolute game changer. For decades, entertainment in prison has consisted of television, radio, books, and board games. Tablets allow the typically isolated prison population 21st century access to movies, games, music, news, and education.
Initially, at least at Marion Correctional, prison staff were not too excited about inmates having such a luxury. But as they realized that alleviating idle minds resulted in a less stressful work environment, issues such as not having tablets fully charged each morning slowly went away. Inmates that ship in from other prisons with access to tablets have complained about network connectivity issues, damaged devices, and inadequate charging stations. Fortunately, the Marion network is reliable, but as tablets continue to be introduced to more and more prisons across the state, hopefully they’ll get the other kinks worked out.
These tablets offer a range of entertainment such as games, movies, and news apps, but at a cost. With the option of two different packages, a person can either spend $15 for 25 hours of access with the App Bundle or spend $8 for 200 minutes with the Premium Package. Acquiring the Premium Package costs so much more than the App Bundle because it gives users access to newer movies. So, for $8 you get a movie and a half or two short flicks.
Additionally, there is a free side to the tablet where the user can access the law library (a great feature), the phone (calls do cost money, of course), and education apps such as Edovo and CypherWorx. Courses offered on these education apps cover a wide variety of subject matters, however, nothing that is too comprehensive or counts toward college credits. Upon completion of a course, the “student” receives a certificate of completion. A course can take anywhere from minutes to hours to complete, depending on its content.
For example, a course titled Introduction to Electrical Studies consists of slides containing text and stock images that you are expected to read/study, then after having done so there is a quiz in which the student must answer 10 questions. The student must then answer at least eight out of 10 correctly to receive credit. In the course’s summary it states that the expected completion time is one hour; however, it can be completed more quickly than that.
Another example, a course titled Mastermind Course: Earning Freedom, which is taught by Michael Santos, a self-described investor, speaker, and entrepreneur, is a more interactive course that is filled with videos, text, and in-course questions and essays that engage the student much more effectively. This course seeks to educate individuals on how to set goals and be successful while incarcerated, and how to eventually develop a triumphant release. Testimonial videos featuring the course’s creator, Michael Santos, who served 26 years in prison, along with incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people, lend credibility to the course’s content. This course took me around 18 hours to complete.
Occasionally, an incarcerated peer or I will stumble across courses offering outdated information, a revelation that is no longer unexpected or completely annoying. No one that I know of is completing these courses and collecting certificates with the hope of adding them to their resume or expecting to land their dream job one day. Instead, the guys that I know are taking advantage of the opportunities presented by education apps for a multitude of other reasons.
My buddy “Country” has been casually stacking up certificates in the likelihood that he finds himself back in court and that the judge will take his accomplishments into account. He’s not holding his breath, but when the available opportunities are scarce, every bit helps.
Hamby, an old-school convict who has been down nearly 40 years and dedicates most of his time to working out, completed as many courses as quickly as he could so that he could present his certificates at his parole hearing. Sadly, he was denied again, but that hasn’t deterred him from completing more courses in preparation for his next hearing.
Chris—as average as an average Joe can get, and one of those guys who you look at and wonder, how the heck did he end up in prison?—took a course on parenting that helped him to understand what his teenage daughter was going through during his incarceration.
Inadequate Programming, Technological Solutions
To an extent, many of the available in-person and online courses can be beneficial, but in the greater scheme of things—financial freedom and job security, to name a couple—fall well short of what employers deem adequate. Higher learning opportunities for prisoners are currently so restricted because of limited resources such as funding and a lack of logistical support. In order for this to change, more states need to apply for funds made available by legislation such as the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014. More eligible colleges and universities should also be applying for Pell Grants.
Logistics such as classroom space, certified instructors, and the security necessary to facilitate such classes in an in-person setting all contribute to a higher price-per-inmate dollar figure. This figure must go down for more incarcerated people to have access to quality opportunities.
Based on economies of scale, the implementation of tablets can be a solution to the current lack of funding and logistical supports. Making adequate courses and degree programming available through tablets would eliminate much of the difficulty in finding classroom space, hiring and paying qualified instructors, and providing security. During the pandemic many schools successfully implemented the use of AI software to administer exams to students at home using their computer cameras. Our tablets, too, have cameras, and if similar software was to be used, then incarcerated students could easily and cost-efficiently participate in higher learning.
How is it that the few opportunities that actually allow society’s outcasts to improve themselves are so restricted, and that priority is given to those the system considers “most worthy”? Do we not wish to live in a society that allows all people to flourish? Just as there are people and organizations lobbying for reform and trying to reduce incarceration rates, sadly, there are people and organizations out there lobbying to do just the opposite.
Over two-thirds of the national prison population have a high school diploma, but only 6% have a postsecondary degree, and most of the incarcerated have limited work experience and marketable skills. These statistics create the perception that it’s simply easier for the powers that be to make money off us by being incarcerated rather than invest in educational programs that give us the skills we need to successfully rejoin society.
However, research by the RAND Corporation undercuts these assumptions. According to a 2013 RAND report, “Evaluating the Effectiveness of Correctional Education,” access to education in prison has proven to lower recidivism rates by 43%. Inmates participating in educational programming were 13% more likely to find employment, while those participating in vocational training were 28% more likely to be employed. Moreover, RAND’s findings, which were from the largest-ever meta-analysis of correctional educational studies, concluded that increased investments in postsecondary programming and services for people in prison would result in hundreds of millions of dollars in cost savings per year through reduced recidivism and increased workforce productivity, equating to a savings of roughly $5 for every $1 spent.
Since policies allowing access to education in prison are proven to reduce recidivism and make our communities safer—factors that support broader policy goals of increasing educational attainment, broadening the tax base, and reducing public expenditures—then why as a society are we allowing the financial and political motivations of elected officials to dictate otherwise? Awareness. It all comes down to public awareness.
Sometime this year, North Carolina is expected to implement a statewide system called INet, short for Inmate Network, which will allow for inmates to participate in postsecondary education through the use of virtual teachers who will teach remotely, along with the use of laptops and limited internet to conduct research and write papers. This is the byproduct of a pilot program initiated back in 2013 called Pathways that ran for four years in New Jersey, Michigan, and North Carolina to study the cutting-edge advances in the field of corrections. As for North Carolina, it’s been determined that less idleness leads to more successful and well-behaved inmates. The roll out of tablets confirms this philosophy, with a 35% reduction in staff assaults just within the first year. INet is intended to allow access to postsecondary education to everyone in the prison system, no longer restricting access to a select few. North Carolina has historically been at the forefront in providing education to its incarcerated population, although in the past its quality and accessibility was uneven. This program will hopefully be highly beneficial to the men and women who are incarcerated, and to society as well. Let this be just the beginning of improved education accessibility in our prison systems throughout the nation.
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