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How We See the Problem
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the prison population in the U.S. has skyrocketed in recent decades, with one in a hundred adults—about 2.3 million—currently incarcerated. Nearly all of those individuals will return to their communities at some point, and research has demonstrated that postsecondary education dramatically improves the odds of successful reentry into the community and the labor force.
However, access to programs and cost of programs are obstacles, and often the programming is disconnected from career opportunities.
The majority of incarcerated individuals—64%—have a high school credential. They’re academically eligible for a postsecondary education program; but for most, it’s out of reach. Unfortunately, 93% of colleges don’t provide higher education in prison. Of those that do provide programs, many have limited capacity to serve all interested individuals.
Ascendium’s Approach
Our aim is to support efforts that can help the field better understand what types of postsecondary education in prison programs are effective, how to forge the systemic and institutional partnerships needed to get them in place and how to spread and sustain best practices on a broad scale in order to catalyze genuine systemic change.
Outcomes we seek
Our system-level outcomes include: the development of robust state and national partnerships to share data, best practices and outcome metrics; an increase in the number of eligible incarcerated students able to enroll and complete programs; and the creation of postsecondary options that offer high-quality instruction and curricula, leveraging technology for student access and success.
How we work
We fund initiatives that help develop systems and best practices for high-quality postsecondary education in prison. This means collaboration between partners in the field to ask the right questions, share best practices and data, and remove institutional barriers to program quality, accessibility and student success.
Grants to Expand Postsecondary Education in Prison
Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison Evaluation
Validation
As part of Ascendium’s Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison initiative, this grant supports the Second Chance Educational Alliance in evaluating the initiative and synthesizing lessons learned across participating sites.
Transforming Higher Education Policy and Practice in Prisons and Beyond
Exploration
This grant supports the Education Trust in developing two distinct but interconnected leadership development programs that will engage formerly incarcerated learners and postsecondary education in prison practitioners in an intentional learning exchange, producing nuanced reports and analysis and informing improvements to institutional practice.
Thrive Technical Assistance Program
Exploration
This grant supports College and Community Fellowship in increasing their capacity to provide in-depth technical assistance to higher education institutions and organizations seeking to implement evidence-based, student success components that are uniquely designed to meet the needs of learners transitioning from prison to a traditional campus setting.
Credit for Experience: Leveraging Prior Learning Assessments in Prison
Exploration
This grant supports Reentry Campus Program in refining their program delivery model to increase the meaningful use of prior learning assessments and wraparound services for incarcerated students in Rhode Island. Setting the stage for broad dissemination, the organization will work to codify the program design, cost structure and associated student outcomes.
Higher Education in Prison Landscape Project
Exploration
This grant supports the Alliance for Higher Education in Prison in building a national database of higher education in prison programs and associated data.
Teaching and Learning Initiative
Exploration
This grant supports the Prison University Project in developing and implementing trauma-informed teaching practices in prison-based college programming and assessing their impact. The grant will also enable PUP to develop and disseminate training materials based on the lessons learned.
Alliance for Higher Education in Prison Capacity Building
Exploration
This grant supports the Alliance for Higher Education in Prison as it works toward a 501(c)(3) designation, hires core staff, builds infrastructure, solidifies key partnerships and develops three primary strategic focus areas: programmatic support, resource and information sharing, and research and data.
Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison
Exploration
As part of Ascendium’s Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison initiative, this grant supports City University of New York’s Institute for State and Local Governance, in partnership with the New York State Department of Corrections & Community Supervision, in bringing together key stakeholders to coordinate and align the educational offerings of 47 college and vocational programs operating across 30 prisons to eliminate programmatic gaps, increase transferability and ensure broad access to high quality postsecondary education across New York facilities.
Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison
Exploration
As part of Ascendium’s Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison initiative, this grant supports the Minnesota Department of Corrections, in partnership with the "Just Education" Collaborative at the Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Minnesota, Inver Hills Community College/Dakota County Technical College and Augsburg University, in preparing to launch their “College at Prison” effort to reimagine postsecondary education offerings across all prison facilities in Minnesota.
Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison
Exploration
As part of Ascendium’s Optimizing Delivery Systems for Higher Education in Prison initiative, this grant supports the Iowa Department of Education, in partnership with the Iowa Department of Corrections, Iowa Central Community College, Des Moines Area Community College and the University of Iowa, in developing a plan for expanded postsecondary education options across Iowa that are workforce-relevant and support varied academic and career pathways.
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