$30 Million in Pell Grants for Prisoners
On June 24, 2016 President Obama announced Second Chance Pell, a $30 million pilot program that would fully fund tuition, books, and related expenses for approximately 12,000 inmates to pursue college degrees. This program would expand Pell Grants to federal and state prisons throughout the United States. Currently, only those incarcerated in juvenile facilities or local, municipal, and county correctional facilities are eligible to receive Pell Grants.
While there is evidence that education can improve recidivism rates and inmates’ quality of life, it should be done at the least possible cost to taxpayers. A November of 2005 Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) study stated that “higher education can improve conditions within correctional facilities, [and] enhance prisoner self-esteem and prospects for employment after release…” A 2014 RAND Corporation report noted that “… on average, inmates who participated in correctional education programs had a 43 percent lower odds of recidivating than inmates who did not.” Both of these studies emphasize that education throughout the penal system is crucial to both inmates and the public.
If the opportunity for higher education enables prisoners to improve their lives, then graduates could receive loans, rather than grants, and repay costs after they are released. For example, Texas has a loan repayment program that allows inmates to work toward completing higher education while in prison. A March 22, 2011 Austin American Statesmen article reported that “…of the more than 22,000 felon-students who are out of prison, only 6,630 have repaid the state in full, to the tune of $4.2 million, according to state records.”
At first glance, these numbers might indicate that the program is ineffective and costly. However, U.S. News & World Report’s Student Loan Ranger, a resource that helps prospective students understand the loan process, estimated “that as many as 44 percent of all student loan borrowers today are either at least 90 days overdue or have temporarily postponed payment. Combined with the defaulted borrowers, that means almost 60 percent of student loan borrowers have had problems with their education debt.” Under the Texas loan program, approximately 30 percent of borrowers have repaid their loans.
Two other solutions exist to alleviate the problems with higher education and tuition repayment in prison. First, to the extent possible, penal systems should rely on privately-funded educational programs, such as Bard Prison Initiative, in New York, which enrolls 300 students each year and has successfully graduated more than 350 incarcerated men and women since 2005. Second, a greater emphasis on vocational training and certificates would help improve tuition repayment. The November 2005 IHEP study stated that prisons with successful higher education programs focused on these short-term opportunities. This would ensure higher graduation rates as opposed to longer 2-4 year plans. Shorter programs would also result in less debt, and would likely be more practical for the majority of inmates.
Federal support, if deemed necessary, should be limited to loan repayment programs. Instead of the Second Chance Pell pilot program, the Obama administration should consider directing funding toward expanding higher education opportunities like vocational degrees or certificates. Focusing training on shorter-term education and specialized skill sets would better enable prisoners to meaningfully contribute to society upon release, while minimizing the cost to taxpayers.
— Leah Lagoudis
