Prison Education and Reentry Commons^™

Emotional Intelligence Deficits And Behavioral Escalation Among Justice-Involved Populations, Aleasa M. Word

Master of Arts in Human Services

This capstone examined the relationship between deficits in emotional intelligence and behavioral escalation among justice-involved populations, who frequently demonstrated challenges with emotional regulation, impulse control, aggression, and behavioral escalation. However, many correctional interventions, including traditional anger management programming, emphasized behavioral compliance rather than the underlying emotional processing deficiencies that contributed to these behaviors. This project synthesized existing peer-reviewed literature from psychology, criminology, forensic behavioral health, and correctional rehabilitation research to examine how low levels of emotional awareness, emotional regulation, empathy, and interpersonal functioning are associated with aggression, recidivism, and escalating behaviors. Findings suggested deficits in emotional intelligence were consistently associated …

Faculty Perspectives On Career And Technical Education Programming For Prison And Other At-Risk Populations: Implications Of A Human Centered Design Focus, Taija R. Jackson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional, quasi-experimental study was to examine the perceptions of career and technical education (CTE) faculty regarding their familiarity with human-centered design (HCD), perceptions of the value and worth as a framework for program and curriculum design and willingness to teach in correctional education settings. The survey was administered to postsecondary CTE employed at public community and technical colleges in Utah and Colorado (N = 37). Participants were randomly assigned to either a treatment condition, in which they viewed a six-minute-long video vignette illustrating HCD in practice, or a control condition without exposure to the …

The Virtue Of Hope In Sports Through Spe Salvi And Its Role In Faith, Resilience, And Character Formation In Student-Athletes, Hansson G. Labisig, Arvin D. Eballo

Movement and Being: The Journal of the Christian Society for Kinesiology, Leisure and Sports Studies

Pope Benedict XVI, in Spe Salvi, presents hope as a transformative and redemptive virtue that enables believers to live and suffer differently, rooted in faith in God. He writes, “The one who has hope lives differently.” This study develops a theological-pastoral framework for integrating the virtue of hope into the faith formation of student-athletes within Catholic educational institutions, positioning sport as a genuine locus theologicus for Religious Education and evangelization. Employing the See–Judge–Act methodology, it draws from Spe Salvi, Aquinas’s Summa Theologiae, and the Vatican document Giving the Best of Yourself, in dialogue with C. R. Snyder’s psychological theory …

Beyond The Classroom

DePaul Magazine

DePaul's Irwin W. Steans Center, celebrating its 25th anniversary, has evolved into a national higher-education leader in community-engaged service learning, connecting faculty, students and community organizations to foster mutually beneficial initiatives and outcomes.

Religious Higher Education In Prison In The United States: The Importance Of Well-Being, Robin L. Labarbera

Journal of Global Education and Research

A growing body of scholarship suggests that incarcerated individuals who participate in education programs, particularly those grounded in faith, are better positioned for lasting community reintegration and positive long-term outcomes. Using a mixed-methods evaluation design, the author examines two interrelated questions: whether faith-based higher education is associated with enhanced well-being among current participants and whether program graduates carry those well-being gains into post-release life. Drawing on group interviews with 109 incarcerated men and women across six U.S. facilities and surveys from 157 participants in four states, the study found that participation in a prison-based theological education program was associated with …

School Just Wasn't For Me: Investigating The Intersections Of Education, Incarceration, And Improvisation, Kelly L. Brady

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

New York City is the largest city in the United States and home to the nation's largest school system.  NYC public schools are also the country's most segregated, according to a 2021 report from the UCLA Civil Rights Project.  This qualitative, Arts-Based Research study follows the development and performance of an applied theater piece created by formerly incarcerated and court-involved youth exploring their early educational experiences before encountering the juvenile justice system. Using Disability/Critical Race Theory (DisCrit) and Critical Performance Ethnography this project investigates how structural systems of education and incarceration intersect to construct youth as "others," including special education, …

Systemic Barriers To Educational And Employment Attainment Among Individuals With Substance Use Disorders, Mollie B. Mccann Poblocki

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Substance use disorders (SUDs) and opioid use disorder (OUD) represent one of the most pressing yet poorly understood public health crises in the United States. Despite decades of clinical intervention, recovery outcomes remain deeply unequal, not because individuals lack motivation, but because the structural systems surrounding them are fundamentally broken. This project explored that reality through a comprehensive literature review examining how systemic barriers across educational systems, labor markets, poverty dynamics, and healthcare infrastructure shape vulnerability, treatment access, and recovery outcomes for individuals with SUDs. Major findings revealed a consistent socioeconomic gradient of harm: individuals with lower educational attainment, unstable …

Beyond Measurable Success: An Autoethnographic And Phenomenological Study Of Resilience And Educational Transformation After Incarceration, Robert L. Hudson

Graduate Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how formerly incarcerated students make meaning of their higher education experiences as a means of navigating systemic barriers, fostering resilience, and reconstructing identity during post-incarceration reintegration. Existing scholarship on formerly incarcerated students in higher education emphasizes barriers, recidivism, and completion outcomes while paying limited attention to the subjective meaning making processes through which students interpret their educational experiences (Abeyta, 2022; Bozick et al., 2018; Donaldson & Viera, 2021). Formerly incarcerated learners have largely been positioned as subjects of inquiry rather than as knowledge producers about their own educational lives. This qualitative study …

Honor Everyone, Nicholas Wolterstorff

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

The CPI is a joint project of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary. The project is a five-year program of courses offered in the prison by Calvin professors, culminating in a Bachelor’s or Associate degree from Calvin. Each year, a cohort of twenty new students is admitted from applicants around the state prison system.

How (And Why) To Start A Math Circle At The County Jail, Aram Bingham

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Math circles are a common form of outreach usually run by professional mathematicians as enrichment for K-12 students or teachers. As a setting to stimulate interest and develop positive socialization around mathematical practice, a regular math circle can also be an effective bridge to higher education in carceral settings for both facilitators and participants. This article describes my journey through starting and running math circles in county jails, with a view towards the expansion of mathematics education as another tool for the dismantling of mass incarceration.

Diet: Another Piece Of The Crime Puzzle?, Jerrod Brown, Jeremiah Schimp, Leanne Skehan, Amanda Fenrich, Janina Cich

Nutritional Neurocriminology Today

An expanding body of research suggests that diet and nutrition may play an influential yet underrecognized role in problematic and criminal behaviors. This article synthesizes research linking excessive consumption of sugar and ultra-processed foods to adverse neurobehavioral outcomes, impaired impulse control, aggression, mood dysregulation, and sleep problems. Integrating research suggests that metabolic disruption, neuroinflammation, and gut–brain axis dysfunction may influence cognitive and emotional regulation. While criminal behavior is complex and multifactorial, this article emphasizes nutrition as a modifiable factor to inform forensic mental health practice, correctional policy, and rehabilitative strategies.

Food Insecurity. A Factor In Criminal Behavior?, Jerrod Brown, Jeremiah Schimp, Leanne Skehan, Janina Cich

Nutritional Neurocriminology Today

This article examines how food insecurity and limited access to nutritionally adequate foods impair cognitive function, emotional regulation, decision-making, and impulse control. Emerging research purports that individuals experiencing food insecurity face increased risks of mental and physical health problems, violent behavior, delinquency, heightened childhood vulnerability, and criminal justice involvement across the lifespan. The article advocates for increased awareness, routine screening, and specialized training for professionals in mental health, social services, and the criminal justice system to address food insecurity, thereby supporting long-term policy and community-level strategies that reduce criminal behavior and improve outcomes for vulnerable populations.

Refusing To Run Away From The Hard Part: Notes On Reflexivity Towards Abolitionist Pedagogy & Teaching, Julissa O. Muñiz, Casey P. Wong

Feminist Pedagogy

In this critical commentary, we enter into conversation with educators who have practiced abolition, culturally sustaining pedagogy, and critical pedagogies, and consider what it means to sustain a learning community experiencing harm in real time. We assess a case involving a teacher-student interaction at a private minimum security women’s state prison in Texas. Following one of the author's critical reflections, we think about the importance of abolitionist educators giving benefit of the doubt, grasping at the roots of harm, and controlling their affective responses. We argue that community is a practice and a discipline that must be continuously sustained and …

Exploring The Principles And Values Of Co-Operative Economics And Sustainability To Inform Positive Solutions With Communities Impacted By Incarceration, Mary A. Sutton

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The United States incarcerates more people than any other country. Each month, tens of thousands of people across the country are released from prison or jail. Most return to communities that are economically, socially, and environmentally disenfranchised. The cycling of targeted populations in and out of the carceral system has imposed devastating consequences and inequities on poor Black and Brown communities, consequences that will reverberate for generations. The literature indicates a need for a critical sustainability assessment tool to examine incarceration policies and measure their real impacts on individuals, families, and communities. There is a need for sustainable solutions to …

An Innovative, Interdisciplinary Intervention For Justice-Involved Emerging Adults, Courtney M. Holmes, Jeff Ciak, Marianne Lund, Zehra Sahin Ilkorkor, Grace Kye, Miguel King, Karen Akom, Sarah Jane Brubaker, Molly Hyer, Gary Cuddeback

Teaching and Supervision in Counseling

Interdisciplinary collaboration is an effective training model for counselors in training. As it is becoming increasingly likely that counselors will work in multidisciplinary teams post-graduation, engagement in clinical and research intervention teams is essential to promote learning. Benefits for counseling students include the development of self-efficacy, cultural humility, research skills, counseling skills, and interdisciplinary communication and collaboration skills. This article will discuss a federally funded, interdisciplinary intervention for justice-involved emerging adults that provides supported employment, trauma-informed mental health counseling, and peer support interventions. We will outline the interventions, structure of the project, as well as research and assessment outcomes. Future …

Not Always Welcomed, Lavaughn Wesley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

This qualitative dissertation explores the systemic barriers faced by adjudicated and long-term suspended youth during their reentry into the public school system, focusing on a local urban community in Pennsylvania. Through the lens of Institutional Complexity Theory, this study examines how interagency disconnection, implicit bias, inequitable disciplinary practices, and inadequate support structures contribute to the marginalization of historically underserved students, particularly Black youth, students with disabilities, and those from low-income households.

The research is driven by two central questions:

(1) What are the barriers for adjudicated youth during the reentry process?

(2) How can the home school reentry process …

Visualizing Religion In American Culture: Comics As Tools For Deep Learning In The Lipscomb Life Program, Robbie Spivey, Josh Fleer, Kynnedy Gilbert, Sierra Chagnon French, Cindy Valentine

Student Scholar Symposium

This session explores how visual learning is used in the course Religion in American Culture (HI 4013), part of the Lipscomb Initiative for Education (LIFE) Program, which provides higher education for incarcerated students. The program follows the Inside-Out model, bringing together Lipscomb University students and incarcerated students in a shared learning space. Instead of a traditional research project, this session highlights how the LIFE Program creates a unique learning community where all students engage deeply with course topics. A panel of students and professors will share how the class's creative assignment—drawing comics to illustrate key themes from each course unit—puts …

Criminalizing Difference: An Intersectional Analysis Of Disability In The Criminal Justice System, Rowan Eisleman

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

This research addresses the central question: How do individuals with disabilities intersect with the criminal justice system, and what systemic factors contribute to their overrepresentation and victimization? Despite over 61 million Americans having disabilities, there exists a significant gap in comprehensive scholarship examining disability-criminal justice intersections, particularly regarding how people with intellectual and developmental disabilities experience unique vulnerabilities as both offenders and victims. This study contributes to disability studies and criminology by providing a comprehensive intersectional analysis examining how disability compounds with race and gender to create compounded marginalization. This study conducted a comprehensive literature review, analyzing government statistics from …

Echoes Of Isolation: A Phenomenological Study On The Impact Of School Closures On Incarcerated Students’ Academic Achievement, Arthur F. Kimball

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This study examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on traditionally marginalized male students, mainly Latino and African American, who were incarcerated in three juvenile detention facilities in Riverside County. The study explored the challenges these youth faced in accessing educational support during the pandemic, assessed the academic effects of remote learning, and identified culturally responsive strategies to improve their educational outcomes and help with their reintegration into society. A qualitative phenomenological approach was used to explore the lived experiences of incarcerated youth, emphasizing the barriers they faced and the resilience they showed during remote learning. Data were gathered through …

Behavioral Manifestations Of Childhood Abandonment: African-American Men's Reflections And Strategies To Support Teenage Boys In K-12 Education, Jarmel Bell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the behavioral manifestations of childhood abandonment as reflected in the lived experiences of African-American men and to identify strategies that may support African-American boys in K–12 educational settings. Although there has been limited documentation regarding the direct connection between childhood abandonment and behavioral challenges in school environments, this study seeks to address that gap by capturing the reflections of African-American men who experienced abandonment during their formative years. These reflections provide insight into how abandonment may shape behavior in educational spaces and what types of interventions or supports might have made a …

Exploring Human Centered Design Thinking To Develop Career And Technical Education (Cte) Programs For Incarcerated Individuals: Development And Pilot Of A Faculty Survey Instrument At A Utah Technical College, Taija Jackson, Michael Pate

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

Postsecondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) institutions are confronted with growing demands to improve efficiency while boosting student outcomes and achieving performance metrics for funding. As enrollment competition grows and funding sources change, technical colleges are looking to develop new programs and identify untapped student populations such as incarcerated individuals. Instructors of postsecondary CTE technical programs often bring industry experience but typically lack formal teaching training unlike their secondary CTE instructors which may create variable teaching success and impacts both teacher confidence and student achievement, especially for at-risk populations such as incarcerated individuals. This research explores faculty perspectives on human-centered …

Archaeology As Alternative Prison Education, Jayne Price Dr, Caroline Pudney Dr

Journal of Prison Education Research

This paper presents the educational focused outcomes of a set of workshops entitled 'Introduction to Archaeology’ that were delivered within a prison. The workshops were delivered as part of a project that seeks to explore the pro-social benefits and social capital (i.e. social and structural aspects that support positive identity formation) that could be developed through engagement with archaeology, specifically for those within the criminal justice system. The workshops offered a bespoke, alternative, educational offering within an adult male prison in Wales. It was designed and delivered by an archaeologist who has an established background in the field, especially in …

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

Italian Mathematics Prison Teachers’ Perspective On The Teaching/Learning Of Mathematics In Prison School, Andrea Maffia, Luca Decembrotto, Chiara Giberti, Federica Mennuni, Gabriella Pocalana, Silvia Regola, Agnese Telloni

Journal of Prison Education Research

Teaching in the prison context is characterized by a high complexity level; it is a multifaced activity influenced by several factors depending on the specific context. We present a preliminary but overall picture of schooling in Italian prisons by considering teachers’ reflections regarding their experiences in teaching mathematics in correctional facilities. To address the gap in the current literature on this issue, we conducted a SWOT analysis on the reflection provided by a group of nine Italian mathematics teachers who teach in different prisons and with different experiences and backgrounds. Their reflection allowed us to identify and describe six theory-driven …

The Pedagogical Experiences Of Online Correctional Education English Composition Faculty, Candace Chambers

Journal of Prison Education Research

With increasing efforts to expand correctional education college programs, previous research has primarily explored the experiences of instructors teaching in face-to-face settings. However, little is known about the experiences of faculty teaching in online correctional education programs within the United States. This qualitative, transcendental phenomenological study addresses this gap by examining the experiences of five online English composition correctional education instructors. Data collection methods included semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and a focus group. Findings revealed that instructors adapted their teaching practices to accommodate the online format, faced challenges in building relationships with students, and desired more professional development. These insights …

Underlying Causes Linking Foster Care And The Criminal Justice System, Marcia D. Wheeler

Master of Arts in Human Services

This research expands on the ongoing statewide crisis within the foster care system that needs to be properly addressed to benefit future and current foster youth. Research has found a connection between foster care and prison, often referred as the “foster-care-to-prison-pipeline.” This study aimed to explore the impact of trauma experienced by current and former foster youth through a life course lens looking at crucial areas of development using a mixed methodology supported by theoretical theories that explored the connection between foster care and the criminal justice system. The results showed that current and former foster youth face many adversities …

A Drop In The Ocean: A Critical Look At Belonging And Community In Carceral Setting, Jelena Petrovic, Jacob Bickel, Jonathan Cantero, Romano Estrada, Malcolm J. Thrower, Gregory White

Feminist Pedagogy

In this commentary, we explore the opportunities and challenges of community building within our own higher education in prison program. Since 2015, the program fostered a community grounded in feminist pedagogy, emphasizing interconnectedness and decentralization of power. However, our 2024 evaluation revealed that new students often feel excluded and marginalized, highlighting the aspirational nature of the community. With this in mind, we examine how incarcerated individuals become members of a learning community and the unique struggles they face. We also discuss the importance of creating classroom communities that support students' sense of belonging, particularly in carceral settings, while also reflecting …

Through The Wire: Examining The Experiences Of Formerly Incarcerated Students In Prison Education Programs And The Wraparound Services Needed To Support Their Success, Isabel Castro

Dissertations

This qualitative study examines the experiences of formerly incarcerated individuals in Prison Education Programs (PEPs) and the wraparound services necessary to support their success. Through Schlossberg’s Transition Theory, this study explores how incarcerated students navigate educational transitions and how educators facilitate transformative learning. Using case study and narrative inquiry, interviews were conducted with fifteen formerly incarcerated PEP participants and seven educators.

Thematic analysis revealed six major themes: Access to Education in Carceral Settings, the Impact of Education on Incarcerated Individuals, Wraparound Services and Student Support, Experiences of Formerly Incarcerated Students, the Role of Educators and Program Facilitators, and Best Practices …

Reimagining Pedagogies Of The Prison Yard: Using Ethnotheatre To Embody Transcarceral Conocimiento, Mabelle Reynoso

Dissertations

Latinxs make up 40% of California's population but account for 45% of the prison population and 47% of the jail population (Sawyer, 2023). Their overrepresentation in carceral custody not only impacts the individual but also affects families and communities by limiting access to social, political, and educational capital and agency. In response to gaps in research specific to the collateral impact, this interdisciplinary arts-based qualitative study highlights the experiences of five formerly incarcerated Latino men who participated in an Arts in Corrections playwriting class during their time in a California state prison. This study foregrounds their knowledge as cuentistas (storytellers), …

Baby, Did You Get Your Diploma?: The Lived Experiences Of Formerly Incarcerated African American Men In The Pursuit And Attainment Of College Degrees, Charles D. Gidney

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of formerly incarcerated African American men in the pursuit and attainment of college degrees. This qualitative study examined the post-incarceration educational journeys of eight men. Formerly incarcerated African American men were selected based on the limited amount of academic research that exists targeting this student demographic. A broad cross section of educational attainment was represented in this study with two participants possessing PhD’s; one doctoral candidate; two doctoral students; and three undergraduate students (one freshman, one sophomore, and one junior). At the time of the study their ages ranged …