Your comment post should be at least 350 words this week due Thursday by 11:59 pm (worth 70 points) and you will be responsible for responding (respectfully) to one of your classmates in at least a one paragraph reply entries by Sunday at 11:59 pm (worth 30 points).
Should prisoners be given the opportunity to get an education?
States are finally backing away from the draconian sentencing policies that swept the country at the end of the last century, driving up prison costs and sending too many people to jail for too long, often for nonviolent offenses. Many are now trying to turn around the prison juggernaut by steering drug addicts into treatment instead of jail and retooling parole systems that once sent people back to prison for technical violations.
But the most effective way to keep people out of prison once they leave is to give them jobs skills that make them marketable employees. That, in turn, means restarting prison education programs that were shuttered beginning in the 1990s, when federal and state legislators cut funding to show how tough they were on crime.
President Obama pointed the country in the right direction last year by creating a pilot program that will allow a limited number of inmates to receive federal Pell Grants to take college courses behind bars. The program will include colleges that either run prison education programs or want to start them. So far, more than 200 schools in 47 states have expressed interest.
Alex Schwartz, one of our Student Council members, agrees with the Times editorial:
The editorial board makes a very compelling case for investing in a solid higher education system for prisoners. It made me think about the roles of inmates in society once they are released from prison, and how we should really be considering that when looking at criminal justice reform. It’s not just about improving inmates’ experiences in prison; it’s making sure that they’re on their feet once they’re released.
But, not everyone supports this line of thinking. In 2014, when Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo made a proposal that would have set aside $1 million in a state corrections budget of $2.8 billion to finance college education programs behind bars in New York, a vocal opposition scuttled the idea. Here is what The Times reported then:
In Albany, lawmakers started petitions to collect signatures from constituents who oppose the idea, including one with the title “Hell No to Attica University.” The State Senate, which is controlled by Republicans and a group of independent Democrats, included in its draft of the budget a provision that forbade the use of state money to pay for college degree programs in prisons unless inmates pay the full tuition.
The idea provoked outrage in Washington: Three Republican congressmen from upstate New York introduced what they called the Kids Before Cons Act, which would prevent federal money from being used to pay for college classes for federal or state prison inmates.
The proposal also gave fodder to Rob Astorino, the Westchester County executive, who is campaigning to unseat Mr. Cuomo in November. During a recent visit to Buffalo, Mr. Astorino, a Republican, spoke about how he and his wife were saving to pay for their children to go to college. “Maybe our 10-year-old son, we should sit him down and explain how to rob a bank,” Mr. Astorino said.
Students: Read both articles, then answer the questions below:
— What do you think? Should prisoners be given the opportunity to get an education?
— Does providing prisoners with the chance to take college courses in prison help them get a leg up when they are released? Does it help prevent inmates from landing back in jail later on?
— Do you trust the research, cited in the editorial, that shows money spent on prison education actually saves the government money in the long run because prisoners are less likely to get wrapped up in the criminal justice system again?
— Or do you think any money spent on prison education programs takes away from money that could be spent on education for law-abiding citizens?
— Do you agree with Mr. Astorino, the Westchester County executive, who argued that investing money in prison education sends the wrong message to hard-working families? Why?
There's a lot of controversy by which it says if it's good for prisoners college education which it would cost $2.8 billions of dollars. Even tho its a lot of money it would help prisoners who actually want to study for a card and want to better himself. Who actually learn a lesson and that's to better himself because stealing or robbing it's not the right thing to do. This new program would help certain people not all because of that they did to be in prison. Some of things people might be people who stole and people who got caught with drug. This would help them and our government because when the prisoner gets out of jail they would go out and look for a job there magor is on. It would help the government by helping people be something in there life and by making an opportunity and not making them fall in the same situating they were before. This would make most of the prisoners not go back to prison after their release. Even tho this is meant for the prisoners to get out of jail and get a better life but i think this also helps the government by saving money because if they get a cared most likely they won't end up in jail back at it again. Some people think this is a bad idea such as Mr. Astorino he thinks the government is putting money on people who have committed something wrong and now they're getting a free education. Astorino thinks the government should use the money for citizens that have done nothing wrong such as kids. I think what the government is doing is good because they won't be as much crime and the people who get release won't go to their bad habits. Now they can look forward to get a job and earn there money the honest way.
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