Schools Offering College Courses to Inmates - Connecticut

Program Website: www.wesleyan.edu/cpe/

Contacts: Cathy Lechowicz, Program Manager, clechowicz@wesleyan.edu, 860-685-2841; Lexi Sturdy, CPE Fellow, asturdy@wesleyan.edu

Program Description: The Wesleyan Center for Prison Education offers a high-caliber liberal arts education inside prison walls. In September 2009, the Center enrolled its first class of students consisting of nineteen men at Cheshire Correctional Institution. Over the course of two years, these students have pursued a broad curricular sequence of Wesleyan courses in the humanities and the natural and social sciences.

As a result of its recent re-approval by Wesleyan’s faculty, the Center has been authorized to admit additional cohorts of incarcerated students at Cheshire Prison, as well as create a second college campus at York Prison for women in 2012. Holding regular admissions at these two facilities, the Center intends to grow by approximately 20 students each year.
By fostering innovative and collaborative learning, the Center for Prison Education offers a dynamic approach to reduce rates of reincarceration and democratize access to educational opportunity. The Center is a member of the Consortium for the Liberal Arts in Prison at Bard College.

Degrees Offered: No degree offered, but does award credit

Programs Offered: The program’s only goal is to offer a well-rounded curriculum aimed at introducing students to the widest possible range of disciplines and methodologies in the liberal arts. The program therefore offers a broad curricular sequence of Wesleyan courses in the humanities and the natural and social sciences, depending on what faculty choose to offer as courses.The program also offers a college prep program that is run by Wesleyan main campus student volunteers.

Unique Features: The Center also provides diverse research and volunteer opportunities for students on the main campus. Current undergraduates have the opportunity to collaborate closely with incarcerated men, women and youth through exciting new course offerings and workshops, and by serving as writing tutors and teaching assistants.

Headquarters: Cheshire, CT

Correctional Facilities Served: Cheshire Correctional Institution

Population Served: Incarcerated students who submit applications to the program, from which nineteen participants are selected for the final cohort

Number of Students: 36 in total as of 2011

Graduates to Date: N/A

Year Founded: 2009

Founders: A group of Wesleyan undergraduates, including Molly Birnbaum, Russell Perkins and Alexis Sturdy

College/University/Organization Partnerships: Wesleyan University

Funding: Seed grant from the Bard Prison Initiative but now funded by private donations