Convict Criminology and Convict Higher Education Essay ⋆ Criminal Justice Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

The work, efficacy, and legitimacy of the New School of Convict Criminology and its agenda to promote and advance convict and ex-convict higher education is open to ethical consideration on several fronts. The primacy issue is whether the agenda of convict criminology, a term coined by Stephen Richards and Jeffrey Ross, and the promotion of higher education conform to the goals of the criminal justice system. Among other ethical issues to be considered are: What is the cost to the taxpayer of providing college programs for prisoners? Does a college education help ex-convicts get jobs after release from prison? Can education be an argument for release? Is prisoner reentry to the community more successful because of higher education?

The Agenda of Convict Criminology

The informal organization of convict criminology, comprised of ex-convict and nonconvict Ph.D. professors, provided the foundation for the New School of Convict Criminology, within the American Society of Criminology. The scholarship of convict students and ex-convict Ph.D.s has further validated the legitimacy and contributions of higher education in the criminal justice system and the benefits for society. Ex-convict and nonconvict criminologists work side by side to explore and promote greater productivity within the criminal justice community.

Convict criminology’s higher education agenda provides a proven real solution to crime reduction and successful reentry. Many prisoners are ready for higher education and possess the skills to produce quality work in prison classrooms and upon reentry in the academic environment of a college. Higher education contributes to the humanity of the prison by challenging the prisoner to self-improve when there is little else of substance available. Convict criminology affirms through personal experiences and academic scholarship that higher education in prison and outside of prison for convicts and ex-convicts alike has significance for society.

“Convict criminologists” serve as role models for convicts and ex-convicts alike. Many began their current academic careers with college courses offered behind prison walls. They continued their pursuit of advanced degrees both inside prison and after prison and have successfully attained Ph.D.s. They work in universities, do research, and publish their findings in books and academic journals. The late John Irwin stands as a notable example of someone who advanced from convict to college professor. Convict criminologists are models for those aspiring to a productive life. Their academic excellence exemplifies the goals of the criminal justice system.

Many ex-convict professors self-identify despite personal risk that, at times, exposes their past transgressions and subjects them to public review.

The consequences are several and include loss of jobs and personal attacks. Those convict criminologists who choose to self-identify seek to be transparent and serve as examples for the public, convicts, and other ex-convicts. The ex-convict professors strive to assist those inclined to continue their education both inside and outside the prison. Since its humble beginnings, convict criminology and its mission has spread throughout the United States to Canada, United Kingdom, Europe, New Zealand, and Australia.

The Value of Higher Education Prison Programs

Higher education, as much as or more than other criminal justice programs, contributes to public safety. L. Sherman et al. in an extensive 1998 study, looked at a great array of prison programs, including boot camps, shock incarceration, and vocational development, and found education to be more significant for reducing recidivism. Retribution wasn’t ignored (the convict served the sentence), it was supplemented by opportunity (education/rehabilitation), and deterrence is achieved by success (employment). The ex-convict who does not return to prison and is employed is an asset to society and a significant cost-saving for the taxpayer. The ex-convict who is employed because of higher education becomes a contributing member of the community and pays taxes.

The efficacy of higher education for reducing recidivism should be obvious. Research has affirmed that the increased education of convicts and ex-convicts lowers the likelihood of failure. Ex-convicts with some college have recidivism rates of 13.7 percent, and those with a B.A. degree of 5.7 percent, compared to prisoners with no college credits with recidivism rates greater than 60 percent. Moreover, the most dramatic of the recidivism statistics is for those ex-convicts who attain an M.A. degree. In their case, recidivism is 0.

There are more than 350 prison higher education programs in the United States. Among the more successful of these are The College Program offered in San Quentin Prison, begun in 1996. Another is The Bard Prison Initiative in 1997. A newer program is New Jersey’s NJ-STEP initiated in 2012. These programs manage to exist because of substantial support that includes funding. Some programs have been canceled because of lack of funding. A review of ex-convict members of Convict Criminology provide examples of the success that results from higher education. Increased funding of higher education initiatives both in and after prison can contribute to greater success.

Thirty years of research, beginning in the 1980s, consistently illustrates that prison education programs are successful at preventing failure after release from prison. The notion of failure is used as opposed to the more common expression of recidivism because many ex-convicts are not convicted of new crimes, yet cannot find reclamation in society. Higher education expressed in terms of the attainment of degrees has an evidence-based research foundation that demonstrates lower failure rates. However, the higher education degree does not guarantee employment because of the necessity of reporting convictions on applications. In some cases, there are legislative exclusions from jobs because of specific criminal offenses.

Higher education is both inexpensive and humane prison programming. Estimates of the cost of a filled prison cell range from about $25,000 to more than $70,000 per year. The cost of a year of college is about $8,000. The cost inside a prison is significantly lower because very few convicts carry a full-time college load. Higher education is cost-effective for the prison because it reduces the need for disciplinary procedures and expensive segregation cells.

Prison officials make note of the convict college student as someone who causes less trouble in the institution because they have their studies to focus on, which in turn provides them with hope for a future. Prisons have their problems, and those convicts attending college classes represent the least of a prison’s troubles because the convict student is engaged in purposeful activity—activity that helps ensure a more productive transition to society.

Unfortunately, the public conversation about crime usually focuses on the fear of violent criminal events perpetrated by relatively few individuals. The media, newspapers, and television feed the public’s morbid interest in violent crime. The public does not realize that most people in prison were convicted of nonviolent crimes. Little attention is given to former prisoners who succeed upon their return to the community. All prisoners need positive role models. Convict criminology provides both an example of the value of higher education and positive role models for prisoners reentering society.

Bibliography:

Austin, James and John Irwin. It’s About Time. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2012.
“College Behind Bars: How Educating Prisoners Pays Off.” Forbes (March 25, 2003). http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2013/03/25/college-behind-bars-how-educating-prisoners-pays-off (Accessed June 2013).
Correctional Association of New York. “Education From the Inside Out: The Multiple Benefits of College Programs in Prison” (2009). http://www.correctionassociation.org/resource/education-from-the-inside-out-the-multiple-benefits-ofcollege-programs-in-prison (Accessed June 2013).
Erisman, Wendy and Jeanne B. Contardo. “Learning to Reduce Recidivism: A 50 State Analysis of Postsecondary Correctional Education Policy.” Institute for Higher Education Policy (2005).
Jones, Richard. S., Jeffrey I. Ross, Stephen C. Richards, and Daniel S. Murphy. “The First Dime: A Decade of Convict Criminology.” The Prison Journal, v.89/2 (2009).
Richards, Stephen C. “John Irwin.” In Fifty Key Thinkers in Criminology, K. Hayward, S. Maruna, and J. Mooney, eds. London: Routledge, 2009.
Richards, Stephen C. and Jeffrey I. Ross. “The New School of Convict Criminology.” Social Justice, v.28/1 (2001).
Richards, Stephen C., Jeffrey I. Ross, et al. “Convict Criminology: Prisoner Reentry Policy Recommendations.” Special Issue on the 15 Anniversary of Convict Criminology. The Journal of Prisoners on Prisons, v.21/1–2 (2012).
Ross, Jeffrey I. and Stephen C. Richards. Convict Criminology. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2003.
Sherman, Lawrence W., Denise C. Gottfredson, et al., and Prison Studies Project. “Why Prison Education?” http://prisonstudiesproject.org/why-prison-education-programs (Accessed June 2013).
Wesleyan University. “Why College in Prison.” http://www.wesleyan.edu/cpe/about/whycip.html (Accessed June 2013).

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