By Cainen Chambers
Contributing Writer
The U.S. experiences a serious shortage of workers in jobs that involve skills in STEM —Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics — and two policy advocates have a three-point plan for incarcerated persons to bridge that gap, says an op-ed by Eden Badertscher and Basia Skudrzyk in The Hill.
“For people in prison, high-quality STEM education provides a direct route to productive and stable livelihoods … while providing a respected way forward for justice-impacted people: A true second chance,” wrote the authors.
Their three-point plan begins with a call to “Get rid of false narratives about STEM ability.” Badertscher and Skudrzyk say that prejudices bar talent from participation in STEM occupations and so reduce workforce diversity. “By excluding any population, we diminish what we can achieve,” they said.
The second solution asks to make technology in prison equitable with that on college campuses. “We must ensure equitable access to information and communication technology in prisons, as states prepare to implement the $2.75 billion Digital Equity Act,” they wrote.
The act has the purpose of increasing “digital equity among populations most impacted by the digital divide,” which includes the incarcerated population. The authors cited a study that said 92% of jobs require digital skills. Badertscher and Skudrzyk wrote that, “The majority of justice-impacted people can only access antiquated technology,” which does not prepare them for 92% of available jobs.
Finally, the authors ask for an expansion of the Chips and Science Act workforce development funding to prisons. The legislation addresses the global shortage of semiconductor chips that costs the U.S. about $240 billion a year, but ignores prisons entirely. The law has extraordinary potential for returning citizens to contribute to increased chip production in the U.S.
“Everyone deserves a second chance,” write Badertscher and Skudrzyk, and “the groundwork must be laid long before people leave prison. All people who are incarcerated need meaningful career learning, mental stimulation and strong support services to fully reintegrate into society.”
