ASC Presidential Panel: Prison Education Matters

Session Submission Type: Presidential Session

Abstract/Description

This panel will introduce and interrogate the movement to expand public higher education opportunities for incarcerated students in California. Since 2014 (10 years before Pell grants were reinstated for incarcerated students nationwide), California legislators, prison officials, and academic institutions have supported the introduction of community college programs in each of the state's 33 prisons, along with 8 California State University BA programs, and 2 University of California BA programs, now serving thousands of incarcerated students statewide. We will bring the Superintendent of Correctional Education from the prison system (Shannon Swain), two faculty BA program directors (Emma Hughes and Keramet Reiter), a formerly incarcerated doctoral student collaborating with prison educators (Gabe Rosales), and 1-2 incarcerated college students (via video link) into conversation, discussing the challenges, successes, and measures of success of this work. Together, they will focus on explaining what matters to them about being involved in higher education initiatives in prison.

Sub Unit

• Area I. Presidential Panels

Moderator

• Keramet Reiter, University of California, Irvine

Speakers

• Emma Hughes, California State University, Fresno

• Shannon Swain, Superintendent of Education, CDCR

• Gabe Rosales, University of California, Irvine