Community Volunteers in Prisons and Jails: Examining the Nature and Context of Service Provision

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract

This panel will focus on the role of community volunteers who provide programming, including reentry services, in prisons and jails. Panelists will assess the nature of service provision, explore the experiences of volunteers, and consider the impact of volunteer involvement on incarcerated individuals and the facilities within which they reside. The utilization of volunteer-provided programming will be considered within the broader context of criminal justice policy. Regional and international variations will be explored.

Sub Unit

• Area IV. Criminal Justice Policy and Practice / 41. Prisons and Jails

Individual Presentations

• Voluntary Work in Prisons - Rosie Meek, Royal Holloway, University of London; Alice Mills, University of Auckland

• Voluntary Service in Prisons and Jails: the Motivations, Experiences, and Consequences of Community Volunteers - Emma Hughes, California State University, Fresno

• “Volunteers Welcome, that is, Some Volunteers”: Teaching College Classes at a Women’s Prison - Kristenne Robison, Westminster College

Chair

• Emma Hughes, California State University, Fresno

Discussant

• Laura S. Abrams, University of California, Los Angeles