Open Campus, a nonprofit newsroom focused on higher education, produces College Inside, a newsletter focused on the future of postsecondary education in prison. We publish a biweekly email and a monthly print PDF edition for inside distribution. You can get the email version in your inbox here (check your spam for a confirmation email if you don't see it right away), and you can sign up incarcerated friends…
Framing the Opportunity: Eight State Policy Recommendations That Support Postsecondary Credential Completion for Underserved Populations, released by Jobs for the Future.
Authors:
Rachel Pleasants McDonnell, Director
Michael Collins, Vice President
To reestablish the U.S.’s place among…
Trellis Foundation blog post suggested by Keisha Johnson on the Whova conference app.
The Power of Policy Fellowships in Achieving Systemic Change
Introduction: At Trellis Foundation, supporting public policy change is crucial to our mission of helping low-income students and students of color succeed in postsecondary education. That’s why our funding strategy includes breaking down the systemic barriers faced by students from communities facing historic and persistent…
This study helps to explain how the use of the criminal history box on college applications and the supplemental requirements and procedures that follow create barriers to higher education for otherwise qualified applicants. In this study, which focuses on the State University of New York (SUNY), we found that almost two out of every three applicants who disclosed a felony conviction were denied access to higher education, not because of a purposeful denial of their application but because they were driven out of the application process.
Brandon Adams shared this great resource through the Whova app.
This report from the Community College Journal of Research and Practice summarizes results from a critical mixed-methods case study of a mid-sized urban community college district. The case study uses publicly available data to compare these colleges’ explicit commitment to access and opportunity with their investments in surveillance, security, and enclosure. The authors argue that a school-prison nexus, or SPN (similar to what many refer to as the school-to-prison pipeline), is enacted well beyond PK-12 schools, in and through higher education.
This brief is part of a series that highlights key issues and best practices discussed at Bridging the Gap: Postsecondary Pathways for Underprepared Learners. Other topics include support services to help underprepared students balance school and daily life, and engaging employers to help build effective pathways to work.
These videos are presentations from a virtual convening in February 2021 of more than 100 attendees who explored the future of technology in postsecondary education in prison. The convening was produced by Open Campus Media with support from Ascendium. Participants included representatives of universities, advocacy groups, funders and state corrections systems.
In February of 2021, Ascendium supported Open Campus Media’s virtual convening of more than 100 attendees exploring the future of technology in postsecondary education in prison. Representatives from universities, advocacy groups, funders, and state corrections systems examined such topics as student perspectives on technology in prison education and the lifting of the Pell Grant ban. This summary highlights the day’s discussions.
This policy outline provides an overview of state financial aid access for students enrolled in prison postsecondary education programs or students with prior criminal convictions who are enrolled in postsecondary education outside of prison.
