Addressing Disparities & Institutionalization

through College Education Programs

Christopher R. Beasley, Ph.DDepartment of Psychology

Washington CollegeAPA 2014

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• Incarceration• Education• Employment• Reentry Challenges• Prison Education• Reentry Education• Integrated Programming• Future Directions

Overview

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US Incarceration Prevalence1

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Incarceration Trend2

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Ethnic Disparities3

4.8%0.7% 1.9%

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Felons & Ex-Felons4

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• Psychological– Trauma & Clinical Illness5

– Institutionalization6

• Dependence on structure and contingencies• Hyper vigilance, distrust, and suspicion• Emotional over-control, alienation, psychological

distancing• Social withdrawal and isolation• Incorporation of exploitive norms of prison culture• Diminished self-worth• Post-traumatic stress reactions

Incarceration Consequences

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• Collateral7

– Legal restrictions – Stigma & discrimination– Careers – Housing– Education– Public benefits – Financial credit – Immigration– Parental rights– Travel– Volunteer opportunities

Incarceration Consequences

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• Unemployment– National figures notoriously absent– Incarceration reduces employment 10-20%8

– 10-30% lesser earnings9

Incarceration Consequences

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• Employers not very willing to hire ex-offenders– 40% would probably or definitely11

– Small Lower in smaller, financial, service, & customer contact10

– Persists in tight labor markets11

• Employer Concerns12

– Lack of skills & experience– Untrustworthiness– Fear of negligent hiring– Sympathetic but protective

Employment Barriers

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• Factors in Marketability12

– Post prison experiences taken into account11

• Work experience11

• Training and hard skills help• College education

– Willingness to hire ex-offenders increased 3x13

– Desire for soft skills• Communication skills• Interpersonal skills• Work ethic

Employment Barriers

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• Education

Education

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General Formerly Incarcerated White Black Hispanic0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Postsecondary Educational At-tainment14

Some College No College

8.411.411.448.4 5.5

• Recidivism

Reentry Challenges

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Any Multiple0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

5-Year Recidivism Rates15

Yes No

76.6 42.3

• Recidivism

Reentry Challenges

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White Hispanic Black Other0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

3-Year Recidivism Disparity15

Arrests No Arrests

68.8 70.7 74.0 76.6

• Immediate Needs16

– Employment– Substance Abuse Treatment– Mental Health– Housing– Transportation

• Challenges– Institutionalization– Identity– Self-Concept– Environmental Adaptation

• Built• Technical• Cultural

Reentry

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• Programs– Community Colleges– Bard Prison Initiative17

– Education Justice Project18

• Outcomes– 51% lower odds of recidivating19

Prison Postsecondary Education

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• Challenges– Security– Administrative Resources– Prison policies and shifting priorities– Qualified educators

• Limitations– Often do not address transition– Institutionalization still present– Federal funding not available

Prison Postsecondary Education

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• Programs– College & Community Fellowship20

– College Initiative21

– Post Prison Education Program22

– Project Rebound23

– Returning Student Support Group24

Reentry Education

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• Outcomes– College Initiative25

• 20x less likely to go back to prison compared to national average

• 5x more likely to graduate than CUNY GED students

– Post Prison Education Program26

• 0% 1-year recidivism for clients• 35% for overflow controls

Reentry Education

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• Challenges– Student Preparation

• Educational attainment• Recent educational experience• Familiarity with systems and technology

– Criminal background checks– Continuance of contacts with prison programs

• Limitations– Often little coordination with prison programs

• Recruitment• Student transition

Reentry Education

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• Pathways from Prison to Postsecondary Education27

– 5-year Demonstration Project • Michigan • New Jersey• North Carolina

– Funding and Technical Assistance• Ford Foundation• Sunshine Lady Foundation• Open Society Foundations• W.K. Kellogg Foundation• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Prison & Reentry Integration

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• Pathways from Prison to Postsecondary Education27

– Postsecondary education and supportive reentry• Links to local employment• 2 Years prerelease• 2 Years postrelease• RAND Corporation evaluation

Prison & Reentry Integration

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• Housing considerations– Living & learning communities

• Stigma– College recovery communities

• Alumni components– Faces of hope

• Hope is related to lesser odds of reincarceration28

Future Directions

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• Communicating alternative narratives to prisoners and greater society– Written stories– Video stories– Spoken stories– Policy briefs and statements

Future Directions

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• Research– Outcomes– Processes

• Deinstitutionalization– Incarceration conditions, policies, & procedures

» Rehabilitation» Replication of outside structure and routine» Opportunities for autonomy» Psychologically and safe settings» Contact with outside world» Alternatives to prison culture and norms

– Preparation for community release– Services to facilitate reintegration

Future Directions

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• Incarceration• Education• Employment• Reentry Challenges• Prison Education• Reentry Education• Integrated Programming• Future Directions

Conclusion

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1. International Cenre for Prison Studies. (2010). World Prison Population List2. USDOJ (2011). Correctional Populations in the United States, 20103. U.S. Census. (2010). Correctional Population in the United States4. Shannon, S.K.S., Uggen, C., Schnittker, J.,Thompson, M.,Wakefield, S., & Massoglia, M.. (In Progress). Growth in the U.S. Ex-Felon and

Ex-Prisoner Population, 1948-2010.5. Haney, C. (1997). Psychology and the limits to prison pain: Confronting the coming crisis in Eighth Amendment law.6. Haney, C. (2001). The Psychological Impact of Incarceration: Implications for Post-Prison Adjustment7. NACDL (2014). Collateral Damage: America’s Failure to Forgive or Forget in the War on Crime8. CEPR (2010). Ex-Offenders and the Labor Market9. Kling, J. Weiman, D., & Western, B. (2000). “The Effects of Mass Incarceration on the Labor Market10. Holzer, H. J., Raphael, S., Stoll, M. A. (2002). Will Employers Hire Ex-Offenders? Employer Preferences, Background Checks, and

Their Determinants 11. Holzer, H. J. (2007). Collateral costs: The effects of Incarceration on the employment and earnings of young workers12. Fahey, J., Roberts, C., & Engel, L. (2006). Employment of Ex-Offenders: Employer Perspectives13. Albright, S. & Denq, F. (1996). Employer Attitudes Toward Hiring Ex-Offenders14. Harlow, C. (2003). Education and Correctional Populations15. Cooper, A. D., Durose, M. R., & Snyder, H. (2014). Recidivism Of Prisoners Released In 30 States In 2005: Patterns From 2005 To

201016. James, N. (2014). Offender Reentry: Correctional Statistics, Reintegration into the Community, and Recidivism17. www.bpi.bard.edu18. www.educationjustice.net19. Davis, L. M., Bozick, R., Steele, J. L., Saunders, J., & Miles, J. N. V. (2013). Evaluating the Effectiveness of Correctional Eduction: A

Meta-Analysis of Programs That Provide Education to Incarcerated Adults. 20. www.collegeandcommunity.org21. www.collegeinitiative.org22. www.postprisonedu.org23. www. asi.sfsu.edu/asi/.../proj_rebound24. www.rssgchicago.org25. College Initiative (2013). Fact Sheet.26. Lovell, D., Walch, J., & Rhodes, L. A. (n.d.). Preliminary Evaluation: Post-Prison Education Program27. VERA (n.d.). Pathways from Prison to Postsecondary Education Project28. Dekhtyar, M., Beasley, C. R., Jason, L. A., Ferrari, J. R. (2012). Hope as a Predictor of Reincarceration Among Mutual-Help

References

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