NCJ Number
198469
Journal
Journal of Correctional Education Volume: 53 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2002 Pages: 154-158
Date Published
December 2002
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Focusing on the elimination of Pell Grant eligibility for State inmates, this article examines the access to, quality, success, State commitment of, and maturity in postsecondary educational programs for State inmates.
Abstract
This article discusses postsecondary educational programs for State inmates, prior to and after the elimination of Pell Grant eligibility for State inmates. Noting that the United States’ prison population is currently increasing, rising more than 300 percent from 1980 to 1996, the author states that at least 50 percent of all State correctional facilities cut back on their prisoner education programming between 1991 and 1996, spending more money on building new prison facilities in place of educating and reforming prisoners. For this study, the author sent surveys to the directors of postsecondary correctional education programs in the 50 States and the District of Columbia. The 44 fully completed surveys were analyzed using multivariate analyses of variance. The results indicate that other types of replacement or supplemental funding programs were established for correctional education in the States in which Pell Grant eligibility was eliminated. Citing the federally funded Youthful Offender Grant, various private grants, and inmates and their families paying for all costs of higher education, the directors of postsecondary correctional education programs indicated on-going attempts to fund educational programming for prison inmates despite a significant decrease in access to and quality and success of educational programming since the elimination of Pell Grant eligibility for State inmates. References