As the world becomes more digitized, prison education advocates are calling for that technology to come to Commonwealth prison education programs.

In 2024, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission found that 40% of incarcerated people in Virginia have an assessed need for education to reduce their likelihood of reoffending.

Terri Erwin, director of the Virginia Consensus for Higher Education in Prison, said prison education programs are highly effective in reducing recidivism.

"People who get education while they’re incarcerated, of whatever level, helps them once they get on the outside to find their way, in a more constructive way," she said. "They don’t come back to prison if they have more tools to make their way in the outside world."

According to the Vera Institute, college education programs in prison reduce a person’s likelihood to reoffend by around 67%.

Erwin said bridging the digital divide in prison education systems can be a challenge as prisons try to balance education accessibility and security. Some other states, though, have worked through it. Prisons in Maine allow the incarcerated to attend online courses at some Virginia universities.

According to the Center for Justice and Economic Advancement, incarcerated people in Maine can access laptops and Wi-Fi for online classes and remote work.

"It’s a battle that lots of higher education in prison programs are facing with corrections," she said. "How do we find a way to implement secure technology that allows people to learn, and professors to teach and get the job done?"

The commission also found prison education programs in the Commonwealth face long wait times because of staffing, space and technology issues.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation

Source: Public News Service