New emphasis is being placed on educating prisoners to help them succeed when they are freed the Wall Street Journal reports.
“It’s a worthwhile use of money, and it’s going to do what we want it to,” said philanthropist Doris Buffett. Her Sunshine Lady Foundation and the Ford Foundation have contributed millions of dollars to programs that allow prisoners the chance to earn a college education.
A 2013 study by the Rand Corp. found that inmates who participated in education programs, including college courses, had significantly lower odds of returning to prison than inmates who didn’t.
San Quentin State Prison serves as a model for college classes that are making a difference in prisoners’ lives and are viewed as a wise investment by corrections educational staff and students.
Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation in June that includes $12 million to promote statewide priorities, including college classes in state prisons. These classes could begin as soon as this fall.
“Spending money on college education of prisoners is a practical use of funds; it’s a sound investment. Many students have graduated from these programs and are pursuing higher education,” said Grant Young, college coordinator for San Quentin inmates.
Young oversees correspondence courses for Coastline Community College, Feather River and Lassen Community Colleges that offer Associate of Arts degrees, and The Ohio State University and Colorado State University that offer bachelor’s degrees.
“It’s very important to invest into (California) prisoners. A good way for that to happen is through our academic and vocational programs,” said San Quentin Vice Principal of Education Michael Wheeless.
The renewed emphasis on prison education comes on the heels of Congress cutting public funds for prisoners in the 1990s. Prisoners received $34 million in Pell Grants in 1993, the year before Congress made inmates ineligible for them based upon information provided by the Department of Education to Congress.
Critics say cutting those funds seems to have a link to an increase in the prison population because of parolees returning to prison. Between the mid-1990s and 2013, the U.S. prison population doubled to more than 2 million inmates, many of them repeat offenders, according to Justice Department figures.
A Volunteer Educational Program and college student, Michael Calvin Holmes, is enrolled in Feather River College correspondence courses. The college offers Business Certification and Associate Arts and Behavioral Science Emphasis degrees.
“It gives me direction in my life, and has opened up doors of opportunity for me,” Holmes said in an interview. “After I receive my degree, I will start a business, which will give me and my family stability.”
Jody Lewen, founder of the privately funded Prison University Project at San Quentin, sees more dialogue increasing around funding college education in prison.
“All these things are coming together and creating a higher tolerance for this conversation,” said Lewen.
An example of the benefits of a college education in prison is Patrick Mims, 51. He received an associate degree through PUP in 2009.
He was paroled after serving 20 years for fatally stabbing a man during a fight. Since his release, Mims created a program in Contra Costa County to combat human trafficking at a nonprofit group and now helps ex-offenders transition back into communities.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do that if I hadn’t learned how to write and critically think,” said Mims.
