Program to educate incarcerated people costs 40K per graduate?!

[LevelUP]

I agree that this combo would work, but I can't see such a program being realistically implemented, aside from maybe a very low-occupancy prison with very limited computer usage time windows.

In California, there is actually an accredited college located inside a prison.

It would be far cheaper to do ACE credits for 75%+ of the college credits then enroll in college for the final 25% or less.

All you need is a big empty room & an Internet connection.

Private funding can take care of the rest.

[Jonathan Whatley]

In California, there is actually an accredited college located inside a prison.

It would be far cheaper to do ACE credits for 75%+ of the college credits then enroll in college for the final 25% or less.

All you need is a big empty room & an Internet connection.

Private funding can take care of the rest.

So you're proposing eliminating personnel who do in-person face-to-face college teaching and tutoring with prisoners.

The unstaffed big empty room, Internet connection, and communication with off-site CBE program staff approach will work for some prisoners.

But the unstaffed room approach is very likely to have lower uptake and is certain to have attrition that support from staff would have prevented.

Attrition isn't free. If your plan pays $10k per successful graduate but wracks up additional $2k or $5k bills for students who start the process but drop off dejected when they hit too high a barrier and don't have anyone to help them work through it on-site, you have to account for that.

[LevelUP]

In California, there is actually an accredited college located inside a prison.

It would be far cheaper to do ACE credits for 75%+ of the college credits then enroll in college for the final 25% or less.

All you need is a big empty room & an Internet connection.

Private funding can take care of the rest.

So you're proposing eliminating personnel who do in-person face-to-face college teaching and tutoring with prisoners.

The unstaffed big empty room, Internet connection, and communication with off-site CBE program staff approach will work for some prisoners.

But the unstaffed room approach is very likely to have lower uptake and is certain to have attrition that support from staff would have prevented.

Attrition isn't free. If your plan pays $10k per successful graduate but wracks up additional $2k or $5k bills for students who start the process but drop off dejected when they hit too high a barrier and don't have anyone to help them work through it on-site, you have to account for that.

You make a good point that it would be helpful to have someone on site who can help.

According to this article, "incarcerated people who participated in postsecondary education programs were 48% less likely to return to prison."
https://www.bestcolleges.com/news/2021/0...n-expands/

[ifomonay]

Why not offer them a degree from fully-accredited UoPeople? I attended there. It's a legit school with legit programs. I enrolled in the CS program because I wanted the prereq classes to get into a graduate CS program. It's less than $5k for the entire program. If their majors isn't of their interest, then WGU seems fine.

[rachel83az]

I suspect UoPeople would be too much like a standard CBE degree for prisoners. You still have the issue of turning the prisoners loose into a computer room with access to the internet and no in-person guidance.

And WGU is just a standard CBE program. It wouldn't be easy for students with no prior knowledge - remember, some of these students may only have learned how to read properly in the past few years. There are many considerations beyond sheer financial costs when it comes to educating prisoners.

[Vle045]

It seems to me that a lot of you are making some big assumptions. This is one program of many out there that are mostly funded by private donors. The education programs are usually part of a Christian outreach program, so there’s a potential spiritual element. My father was in prison for stupid choices like check fraud. While he was in there, he ended up in a similar program. I believe it was through Liberty University. The man has never had any real direction in life. He tries, but just can’t seem to get very far in a career. The degree program he chose was Religion. When he was released, he went right to a church to be a lay minister. He found a church where he was able to grow roots and strong connections. It really didn’t lead him to a stable career. But it did give him a better moral compass and a purpose in life. I think the goal of these programs is quite different from the goals that many of us may have. It’s not for job promotions, or to qualify for a specific career path, etc. It’s more complicated than that.