The Florida State University (FSU)/Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) Art Therapy in Prisons Program is contractually required to conduct an annual art exhibition of the participants' work. Originally to be held inside the institutions, it evolved into a single art exhibition at an annual state-wide conference for prison educators. This…

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to have profound effects on U.S. society. However, one group that is often forgotten in the public health debate and that is especially vulnerable to the spread of the virus and its adverse consequences is the 1.2 million incarcerated adults in U.S. federal and state prisons. The COVID-19…

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the motivation for instructors to begin and continue teaching community college courses in carceral settings. Conceptual Framework: My conceptual framework presented public service motivation (PSM) and prosocial motivation as different types of motivation that lead to different types of…

This descriptive action research study uses Transformative Learning Theory as a lens to view incarcerated education from the perspective of incarcerated individuals (I/Is). Data was collected from 19 participants using individual and focus group semi-structured interviews. The data analysis captured the voices and viewpoints of I/Is regarding…

Many schools and districts include character education in their curriculum, the content of which is decided on a local level. These programs flow through multiple grade levels and are often part of career planning. However, it is unknown if youth in juvenile residential placement facilities, who could benefit from these programs, are offered…

In this chapter, I argue that prison education is dangerous. In a context where individual incarcerated people have restricted autonomy, non-incarcerated students, staff, and faculty from colleges and universities can cause real harm by neglecting to consider the vast power differentials between non- or never-incarcerated educators and students in…

Transitioning back into society successfully after incarceration comes with its downfalls, but educational support could potentially address transitional success, especially for formerly incarcerated women. Previous research mainly focused on exploring education options and recidivism outcomes for formerly incarcerated men. There is limited…

Recidivism rates across the world remain high, and one of the key reasons for this situation is that people leaving the prison system have great difficulty in securing employment. Addressing this issue must be explored from a broad perspective, but one potential career option that is under-explored is self-employment, with few entrepreneurship…

Corrections education (CE) faculty Lauren Zavrel reflects on the vacuum of graduate-level programs and professional development (PD) that prepare teachers for the specific work of teaching adults in prisons and jails. Citing her own unique journey into the field of CE, similar stories from colleagues, and literature on the topic, she argues that…

The benefits of postsecondary degrees are striking for populations who have experienced incarceration, yet little is understood about how this population succeeds with educational attainment upon release from incarceration. This qualitative collective case study examined to what extent and how six formerly incarcerated individuals who started…

Dr. Peter Leone is an internationally renowned researcher and advocate for incarcerated youth. Throughout his almost four decades at the University of Maryland, his expertise and research have influenced lawsuits related to the provision of education and special education services in juvenile corrections and paved the way for changes in policy and…

This article examines the relationship between education and rehabilitation within the prison context. It begins by exploring the concept of rehabilitation, examining if prison rehabilitation is possible or if it is what Pat Carlen describes as a "penal imaginary". Drawing on this idea, it considers how rehabilitation may act as a way of…

The North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has developed two methods of working with low-literacy students. One is testing for accommodations for GED testing. The other is integrating the STAR literacy program for adult readers.

Since the recent expansion of higher education in prison (HEP) programs, correctional systems and universities have been working to optimize these programs to yield maximum impact. Collaborating with individuals with lived experience of incarceration and participation in higher education could provide valuable insights toward improving these…

At a time when higher education in prison (HEP) is growing in popularity and acceptance, a myopic approach threatens the field's potential to develop into a more robust and sustainable enterprise. Blindly accepting HEP as a personal and/or societal good while failing to consider the ethical challenges that individuals engaging in HEP work may face…