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For more than 20 years in state and federal prisons, education has been an escape route for Sheron Edwards. He is certified in three college courses, teaches GED and English as a Second Language, wrote an autobiography, and is a personal trainer.
“It made me feel great … to start studying and becoming a scholar because I think it’s the journey of a lifetime,” Edwards told me by phone from the Chickasaw County District Correctional Facility in Mississippi, where he was arrested for armed robbery. imprisoned there.
For all of Edwards’ accomplishments, there’s one thing Edwards hasn’t achieved so far: a college degree. he may be on the road soonHowever, due to recent changes in federal law.As of July 1, most people in prisons (though not jails or detention centers) are now in Eligible for Pell Grant student aid for the first time in nearly 30 years. The Associated Press reported that The change will add 30,000 students Financial aid of about $130 million per year is available after incarceration.A total of 760,000 people were imprisoned There may be new eligibility for aid According to the Ministry of Education, though many prisons do not yet have the capacity or higher education partners.
These need-based federal grants Has long been an important tool for low-income individuals seeking higher education, and those in prison disproportionately come from poor socioeconomic backgrounds.According to the nonprofit Prison Higher Education Research Institute, college education common in prisons Until 1994 the Crime Act excluded incarcerated persons from eligibility for Pell Grants. Without these funds to support university courses, Almost all programs are closed.
In 2015, the Obama administration Pilot program launched Pell eligibility was reactivated in 141 correctional facilities across the country, a number that has since grown to more than 200. Congress quietly dropped the ban in 2020, and federal officials began preparing to reopen the floodgates.
Assistant Attorney General Amy Solomon, who also worked at the Justice Department when the pilot program launched in 2015, told The Marshall Plan, “It’s almost inconceivable that in less than a decade, every university in America will be Requirements” play a role in helping incarcerated students succeed. “
Designed and run by colleges and universities, these programs are mostly face-to-face and must meet certain rules to qualify – for example, Courses must be comparable Content offered on campus.
Recent reports from three states highlight the challenges and opportunities presented by Pell Restoration. The Oregonian reported that While prison education advocates hope that Pell funding will incentivize schools to offer programs, “only a handful of Oregon colleges and one university” plan to go through the approval process, and new programs launched in the state’s prisons are likely to be numerous. after a few months.
In Pennsylvania, Public Source reporter Emma Folts points out that Pell Grants (which cap at just under $7,400 a year) Even half a year of university tuition is not enough. For example, in-state full-time tuition for the 2022-2023 academic year at the University of Pittsburgh is $19,760.
While some programs require the incarcerated or their families to cover costs, even a small contribution from the incarcerated students themselves is difficult because prison work often pays meager salaries.Ruth Delaney of the Vera Institute, a criminal justice reform nonprofit that works on educational opportunities in prisons, said schools often Seek external scholarship and institutional funding If the Pell Grant itself is not enough to cover tuition, it can make up the difference. Many colleges and universities – most famous is bard college – Also launched a prison project that does not depend on public funding at all.
In Massachusetts, WGBH reported that Prison officials themselves are one of the biggest hurdles Launch of university courses. “There’s a cultural opposition to more education,” state Senator Jamie Eldridge told the station. “When universities try to expand in some of our prisons, they are met with either silence or opposition.”
also imprisoned complicates nearly every step of the educational processfrom lack of computer and internet access to the possibility of sudden prison transfers, throwing students off track academically.
If college programs can overcome these financial and bureaucratic barriers to access more prisons, advocates believe it will have a positive impact on students themselves and on public safety in general.Research shows that incarcerated persons who take classes in any subject while in prison 43% reduction in recidivism rate than those who don’t. The same study found For every dollar the government spends on prison education, it saves $4 to $5 in readmission costs.
Educational programs, especially those leading to accredited university degrees, also help ex-cons in the brutal job search process after release. As Talmon Smith reported this week for The New York Times, 60% of those released from prison are unemployed a year latereven with the economy-wide unemployment rate near record lows.
Then there’s the human element. This week, I also spoke with Shelby Manning, who was released from a Tennessee prison two months ago. She told me that when she was first charged with drug charges, she frankly thought the idea of going to college was “stupid.” But about a year later, Manning decided to give it a try and enrolled in college classes through the Tennessee Higher Education Program.
Now, she sees it as part of her recovery and her path to a future of her choice. “If you’re going to school, it makes you feel worthwhile,” Manning told me. “It makes you feel … that there’s something good about you.”