Wesleyan College in Prison Program

Wesleyan University has developed a program that will allow male prisoners in a Connecticut penitentiary to gain college credit.  The college-in-prison program is accredited, allowing faculty and students from the college to teach for-credit courses to inmates.  Wesleyan students are also running a program at a local women’s prison.  However, this program is not yet accredited, and [...]

If you watch just one video on mental illness in U.S. prisons…

make it this one. Wow. Please watch this excerpt of Trapped: Mental Illness in America’s Prisons. What a powerful and accurate documentary award-winning photographer Jenn Ackermann has given to us all. Please visit her site to find out more about the film and her other work at jennackermann.com.   more about “If you watch just [...]

Sarah Kruzan: Sentenced to Life Without Parole at Age 16

more about “Sarah Kruzan: Sentenced to Life Witho…“, posted with vodpod  

Girl Scout Troop Meets in Women’s Prison

This article is so wonderful! Twice a month, a girl scout troop whose members are all daughters of incarcerated women, meet in a women’s prison in Maryland. These meetings give the mothers a chance to connect with their daughters, giving them time to discuss everything from body image to boys to life with an incarcerated [...]

Acts of Art: The Prison Creative Arts Project (TRAILER)

Below is a video about the University of Michigan’s Prison Creative Arts Project. Auburn University (in Alabama) runs the Alabama Prison Arts and Education Project. View student art work and find out more about the Project here. more about "Acts of Art: The Prison Creative Arts…", posted with vodpod

Utah: Female Incarceration Rates Decreasing

Utah has seen a recent drop in female inmate numbers due to several reentry preparation programs offered at prison.  Though the prison system lacks much federal spending for such programs, the community has proven to help fill the gaps by providing services to inmates.  Everything from becoming a Big Brother or Big Sister, to helping [...]

California’s Technical Violation Policy–Lessons for Alabama?

In an opinion piece published in yesterday’s NY Times, the point was made that,  The heart of the problem is California’s poorly designed parole system. A vast majority of states use parole to supervise serious offenders who require close monitoring. California has historically put just about everyone on parole. According to a federally backed study released [...]

NC Women’s Prison to Close

A specialized women’s facility in North Carolina is scheduled to close due to state budget cuts.  This facility, though quite small, gave female prisoners the opportunity to work and effectively prepare themselves for re-entry.  Now, the inmates will be sent to a minimum security prison where it is unlikely they will receive work release options, [...]

Prisons ban inmates from having pen pal ads

-Jessica Gresko, AP MIAMI — In her online profile, Paula Jones says she is 42, “nonjudgmental” and likes fishing, gardening and cuddling. There’s a catch, though. Jones’ picture shows her in her blue Florida prison uniform. She won’t be out until at least 2010. Her listing is posted on a Web site called WriteAPrisoner.com. She’s [...]

NYTimes: Number of Life Terms Hits Record

By SOLOMON MOORE Published: July 22, 2009 CORONA, Calif. — Mary Thompson, an inmate at the California Institution for Women here, was convicted of two felonies for a robbery spree in which she threatened victims with a knife. Her third felony under California’s three-strikes law was the theft of three tracksuits to pay for her [...]