Future of higher education in New England prisons

Aerial view of Massachusetts Correctional Institute (MCI) at Concord.

— Photo by Nick Allen

From the New England Council (newenglandcouncil.com)

“Earlier this year, the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE), and The Educational Justice Institute (TEJI) at MIT launched the New England Commission on the Future of Higher Education Behind Bars. New England Council President & CEO Jim Brett has been asked to serve on this commission. Both NEBHE and MIT are New England Council members.   

Research shows that there are 201,860 people who are currently incarcerated, on parole or on probation in New England. Additionally, 58 percent of all formerly incarcerated people in the New England region do not have a high-school diploma or equivalent whereas only 13 percent of non-incarcerated New Englanders have not achieved a high school diploma or equivalent. Further, incarcerated people who participate in higher education behind bars are 48 percent less likely to recidivate than those who do not. 

This commission plans to formally convene about 65 individuals who represent key stakeholder groups relevant to prison education, including: key corrections and postsecondary leaders, previously incarcerated individuals, employers, policymakers and governors. In addition, it will issue a formal report that includes stakeholder-specific recommendations and a detailed action plan to make New England a leader in higher education behind bars ahead of the Pell release in 2023. 

Additional information can be found here and here. 

For more information on this issue please contact Sheridan Miller at smiller@nebhe.org. For information on the New England Council’s Higher Education Committee please contact Mariah Healy, director of Federal Affairs, at mhealy@newenglandcouncil.com.”