The purpose of this article is to connect theories Austin MacCormick discussed in his 1931 book "The Education of Adult Prisoners" with examples from modern correctional education practice. The author began teaching an institutional plumbing class in 2000, equipped with an undergraduate degree in elementary education and a master's…

A plumbing program teaches minimum-security inmates technical skills, decision making, motivation, and teamwork. In New York, 80 inmates have completed the program and 2 have become apprentices upon release. The course, combined with substance abuse treatment and high school equivalency, seeks to counteract recidivism with practical life skills.…

Vocational education programs show promise for reducing recidivism, measured most typically through re-arrest and re-incarceration data, among adult offenders. Yet, such programs for women in U.S. correctional facilities have more often provided training in gender-stereotyped and lower-paid professions when compared to vocational programs in men's…