Toward Equity in Experience: Data Collection and Reporting of Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated College Students

• In Event: Division J Vice Presidential Session: College Students With Incarceration Histories: A Discussion on the Landscape of Data Infrastructure and Research

Abstract

Objectives or purposes: To create greater equity in data practices in order to build capacity among college and university staff to accurately and ethically collect and report information on incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students. To assist college and university staff in taking stock of current data collection and reporting practices and engage in intentional processes of incorporating this population of students into critical data infrastructure. To support and provide guidance on data integration as critical to ultimately track and understand the enrollment, experience, and outcomes of incarcerated or formerly incarcerated college students.

Perspective(s) or theoretical framework: This study explores the question of an academic institution's responsibility to carefully and ethically track currently and formerly incarcerated students in order to 1) assist in overcoming institutional bias and stigma toward incarceration and 2) proactively educate faculty and administration about the growing incarcerated student population, largely due to the reinstatement of Second Chance Pell.

Methods: Recommendations for this brief were derived from a national qualitative study that examined if and how colleges and universities collect and report information on incarcerated students. Deductive in vivo coding was conducted by two members of the research team in order to accurately capture the landscape of each respondent’s current tracking infrastructure, in regard to currently and formerly incarcerated students.

Data sources: In 2024, our team collected data from 11 institutions of higher education that were enrolling incarcerated students. We used a brief online questionnaire and conducted 45-minute joint interviews with the directors of Institutional Research and Prison Education Programs.

Results: This study found six recommendations for institutions to implement in regard to tracking incarcerated students: 1) Connect With the Director and Staff of Your Campus Prison Education Program 2) Assemble or Engage an Interdisciplinary Data Use Working Group 3) Create and/or Review Identifiers for Student Populations 4) Identify Processes for Changing or Removing Identifiers 5) Establish Criteria and Protocol for Data Accessibility and Misuse 6) Take Additional Steps to Ensure Data Privacy Regarding Incarceration Status.

Scholarly significance: These recommendations aim to clarify and improve data collection and reporting practices for the growing population of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated college students. As the numbers of colleges and universities serving incarcerated students rapidly rise, it is critical that higher education staff be proactive in developing accurate and ethical data infrastructure. The bias and stigma associated with imprisonment in the U.S. means that college and university staff have an added responsibility to this population regarding data privacy and disclosure.

References

Authors. (2024). Anonymized for peer review.

National Center for Education Statistics. (2023). Changes to the 2023-24 IPEDS data collection. https://surveys.nces.ed.gov/ipeds/public/changes-to-the-current-year

Authors

• Erin L. Castro, University of Utah

• Jason L. Taylor, University of Utah

• Cassie Knaff, University of Utah

• Emily Kersten-Warneke, University of Utah