Embedded Files
By Dayanh and Juliana
While education is meant to be a gateway to a brighter future, our system fails to provide the necessary resources and support for its most vulnerable students. As a result, these individuals face significant challenges in accessing higher education and securing stable employment, perpetuating a cycle of poverty. This ASB trip will look over education and access to opportunities throughout the life of an individual who has been incarcerated, aiming to identify the gaps and prejudices that set them up for a life entangled in the criminal justice system.
Illustration by Tiffany Pai.
Education:
Education:
BEFORE PRISON
BEFORE PRISON
Factors increasing the likelihood of imprisonment:
Factors increasing the likelihood of imprisonment:
Zero tolerance policies: The School-to-Prison Pipeline
Out-of-school factors:
Out-of-school factors:
DURING PRISON
DURING PRISON
AFTER PRISON
AFTER PRISON
Education, the ignitor of social change
Education, the ignitor of social change
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, individuals with higher levels of education tend to have higher earnings and lower unemployment rates compared to those with lower levels of education. In 2021, the median weekly earnings for individuals with a bachelor's degree were approximately 80% higher than those with only a high school diploma. The same source has concluded that the higher the level of education, the less likely the individual is to live in poverty. Therefore, education is a crucial factor in breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty.
Higher levels of education also come with better health and life expectancy: according to Sobolewski JM, Amato PR, families with higher incomes can lead a healthier lifestyle that includes healthier food choices, more time to exercise, and can afford better health care and transportation. Meanwhile, the job insecurity, low wages, and lack of assets associated with less education can make individuals and families more vulnerable during hard times, being subject to food insecurity and living in unsafe areas with high levels of pollution. For this reason, efficient and accessible social services are extremely important to minimize out-of-school factors and enable students to make the most out of their education.
Emily Bazelon’s “Charged”
Who are the individuals most likely to go to prison?
Who are the individuals most likely to go to prison?
Undereducated.
School Dropouts are 3.5 times more likely to be arrested than high school graduates.
Nationally, 68 percent of all males in prison do not have a high school diploma.
According to the National Adult Literacy Survey, 70% of all incarcerated adults cannot read at a fourth-grade level, “meaning they lack the reading skills to navigate many everyday tasks or hold down anything but lower (paying) jobs.”
Subject to school suspensions.
Out-of-school suspension is the number one predictor of wether a child will drop out of school, and likely follow a path of reliance on social-welfare assistance, unemployment and imprisionment. In Texas, 80% of inmates are dropouts, according to the Texas Apple Seed.
Zero Tolerance Schools have a big impact on the issue, as they sentence severe consequences, such as suspension and expulsion, for minor misbehavior, and often refer students to the criminal system to deal with. Check out the Zero Tolerance Schools tab to learn more about how schools are sending kids from minority communities to court.
Black and/or Latino.
Black Americans are incarcerated in state prisons at nearly 5 times the rate of white Americans.
Test scores and graduation rates of students of color are extremely disparate from their white counterparts, creating a massive educational achievement gap.
Poor.
According to the Prison Policy Initiative, people who go to jail, in particular those who go more than once a year, are disproportionately likely to have incomes under $10,000.
These individuals have been failed by the system.
These individuals have been failed by the system.
They have been deprived of opportunities and resources to secure their most basic needs.
They have been deprived of opportunities and resources to secure their most basic needs.
However, educational opportunities, followed by effective social-welfare programs, can break this pattern. These interventions can change someone's life, before, during, or after prison.
However, educational opportunities, followed by effective social-welfare programs, can break this pattern. These interventions can change someone's life, before, during, or after prison.
Local Organizations:
Local Organizations:
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