Your browser is outdated. This site works best on modern browsers such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.
"Education in Action" (EiA) initiatives integrate meaningful work-based learning opportunities for incarcerated students, enabling them to apply knowledge and skills gained through Higher Education in Prison (HEP) programs through participation in remote employment. These are private sector positions that incarcerated individuals can hold remotely (though some are offered as in-person positions) while they are still incarcerated, allowing them to build experience and skills prior to release.
Over the past few years, the Alliance has been at the forefront of EiA initiatives across the country in multiple states.
Kansas partnered with the Alliance to pilot work-based learning with one resident, selected for their proven success and active participation in various programs. including educational initiatives. As an Alliance Fellow, they earn approximately $25/hour with 25% deducted for room and board. The success of this initial exploration of remote work has encouraged Kansas to explore expanding similar opportunities.
Maine currently has dozens of correctional residents involved in work-based learning (WBL) opportunities, making as much as $25/hour, with several residents working in salaried, full-time positions with benefits.
Maine started small, and being at the forefront of EiA exploration has not been without its challenges. But Maine has found EiA to be worth the effort in how it can improve facility conditions, expand the impact of HEP programs, and increase wellbeing for residents and their families.
.png)
Education in Action is an essential step towards building a movement that shifts beliefs and narratives about the value of incarcerated people’s work and challenges the slavery-based model of prison employment. The continued pursuit of our mission and vision underscores the Alliance for Higher Education in Prison's unwavering commitment to shaping an intellectual landscape that recognizes inherent human potential for advancement and growth within the confines of prisons. As conduits for hope, resilience, and opportunity, we are adamant that internships and fellowships possess a transformative power that can engender lasting societal change and disrupt the perpetuation of cycles of criminalization and incarceration.
Work learning opportunities may vary in several ways:
.png)
Kansas partnered with the Alliance to pilot work-based learning with one resident, selected for their proven success and active participation in various programs. including educational initiatives. As an Alliance Fellow, they earn approximately $25/hour with 25% deducted for room and board. The success of this initial exploration of remote work has encouraged Kansas to explore expanding similar opportunities.
Maine currently has dozens of correctional residents involved in work-based learning (WBL) opportunities, making as much as $25/hour, with several residents working in salaried, full-time positions with benefits.
Maine started small, and being at the forefront of EiA exploration has not been without its challenges. But Maine has found EiA to be worth the effort in how it can improve facility conditions, expand the impact of HEP programs, and increase wellbeing for residents and their families.
Mission
The Alliance is committed to ensuring that individuals experiencing incarceration have access to quality education, seeking to create equitable professional-educational opportunities for incarcerated people. To bridge the divide between the acquisition of knowledge and its practical application, the Alliance is launching the Education in Action (EiA) initiative. This initiative focuses on the development of a sustainable infrastructure capable of supporting the implementation of high-impact learning practices during incarceration.
Vision
Education in Action seeks to cultivate an environment that transcends punitive frameworks and advances a culture of lifelong learning, personal growth, and holistic professional evolution through the strategic implementation of apprenticeships, internships, fellowships, and other work-learning opportunities. The Alliance’s vision of EiA promotes an informed, forward-thinking network that wholly embraces the value of high-impact work-learning; this redefined perspective on labor within the carceral system endeavors to challenge persisting prejudices against, and stigmatization of, incarcerated people.
Methods & Impact
Work-learning employment periods typically range from one semester to one year, depending on the needs of the employer, work-learner, and the nature of the work. Participating employers may offer positions to do administrative work, research, graphic and web design, data collection/analysis, policy consulting, curriculum development, writing, content creation, and beyond. Interns will be HEP program students, former students, and graduates seeking professional development in a variety of fields.
Kansas partnered with the Alliance to pilot work-based learning with one resident, selected for their proven success and active participation in various programs. including educational initiatives. As an Alliance Fellow, they earn approximately $25/hour with 25% deducted for room and board. The success of this initial exploration of remote work has encouraged Kansas to explore expanding similar opportunities.
Maine currently has dozens of correctional residents involved in work-based learning (WBL) opportunities, making as much as $25/hour, with several residents working in salaried, full-time positions with benefits.
Maine started small, and being at the forefront of EiA exploration has not been without its challenges. But Maine has found EiA to be worth the effort in how it can improve facility conditions, expand the impact of HEP programs, and increase wellbeing for residents and their families.
