There has been bi-partisan momentum to provide higher education opportunities for students who are impacted by the criminal legal system, but similar to the context of the contemporary crisis of higher education, the problem of racial inequity persists. The Alliance for Higher Education in Prison, a national multi-stakeholder network supporting…

We provide theory and evidence about how the design of college financial aid programs affects a variety of high school, college, and life outcomes. The evidence comes from an eight-year randomized trial where 2,587 high school ninth graders received a $12,000 merit-based grant offer. During high school, the program increased their college…

On the brink of closure, California's Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) requires critical attention. DJJ's inherent flaws and high costs led state leaders to heed long-standing calls for the closure of its youth correctional institutions in favor of local alternatives, a process known as juvenile justice realignment. DJJ stopped most youth…

The validity of the Single-Item Self-Esteem Scale (SISE) in adolescents was not well established, and how self-esteem manifested in newly incarcerated juvenile delinquents was poorly described. Using a retrospective study with archival records, the SISE was compared to other measures of self-esteem, grit, mental health, and academic self-concept…

Workers on prison farms in the United States commonly grow produce and row crops and raise livestock. Teaching good agricultural practices to prisoners and prison staff increases the safety of the food produced and reduces the likelihood of an illness outbreak. We developed a food safety curriculum for use on prison farms in Iowa. In developing…

Despite less than optimal conditions, correctional classrooms provide a unique opportunity to make an impact on a student population often overlooked and avoided. Although there is a great demand for prison educators, attracting and retaining qualified teachers remains a constant challenge for prison school administrators. This mixed-methods study…

The purpose of this research was to investigate the transformative learning experiences of formerly incarcerated participants in The Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP), a three-level experiential training program in nonviolent conflict resolution. It explores participants' interpretation of changes in their mindsets about violence and…

Offering music programs in prisons is one way that artists may contribute to the correctional system's rehabilitative goals. To explore the role music may play in rehabilitating youth in detention, I developed a string program at a Youth Development Center. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the outcomes of implementing the…

During the Persian Gulf War of Iraq-Iran (1980-1988), thousands of Iranians were taken captive by Iraqi troops. These prisoners of war (POWs) had to find ways to enrich and fill their time in prison camps. Learning English was one such activity. This study was carried out to appraise the motivations of the Iranian POWs for learning English, and to…

This study examines what demographic and skill-level factors predict the aspiration to enroll in any education class or program among people in prison in the U.S. The authors draw independent variables from the literature on prison and community-based programs that relate to educational achievement and aspiration. These include race, gender, age,…

In this "Harvard Educational Review" symposium article, Lynette N. Tannis provides an in-depth look at the juncture of education and incarceration. Tannis states that the denial and/or lack of educational programs within carceral settings are concerning given the size of the US prison system. Discourse about the intersection of education…

No research has examined vitamin D deficiency among inpatients within forensic intellectual disability services, despite their potentially increased risk. Tests of serum 25(OHD) concentration in blood are routinely offered to patients within the service as part of the admission and annual physical health check. Results were classified as deficient…

Active learning, with students engaging in research or activities within the community, is a favoured approach in contemporary higher education. To support this approach, the Criminology and Forensic Studies programmes at the University of Winchester have included student research into miscarriages of justice. The students interrogate evidence…

This article reflects on the authors' experiences and those of their students in teaching and learning during a Learning Together course on The Good Life and the Good Society (GLGS) held in an English high security prison involving students serving sentences in the prison and students from the University of Cambridge. This article is based on data…

In response to rising parental incarceration, some correctional facilities and outside organizations offer family literacy programs for parents in prison. However, research on these correctional education initiatives is scant. This paper uses qualitative data to analyze how 11 fathers in a rural Pennsylvania prison were involved in their…