Vol 1, Ed 2 — 2023, December

Happening with HEPI

Dr. Jim Nolan assumed the role of Interim Director while Dr. Katy Ryan is on leave.

HEPI hosted a screening of five short films against carceral injustice followed by a panel discussion in October. Participants from across the globe attended the event, resulting in an inspiring evening of community for change.

In November, HEPI was awarded a two-year grant by the Sunshine Lady Foundation to support tuition costs, graduate student assistantships, and the development of a Writing Center at SCI-Greene.

We have a new website! Check it out at https://higheredinprison.wvu.edu/. We are also accepting submissions for our research and resources page.

Inspiring Change Collective Think Tank

The ICC Think Thank met with prison staff in July to share proposals for new programming at the prison. The proposals were stellar, garnering praise from everyone in attendance. The newly founded book club at SCI-Greene is a result of this Think Tank. The book club met biweekly this semester to read and discuss novels and short stories. Other projects remain in development.

Course Updates

ENGL 101, taught by Dr. Laura Brady, finished up in August. Students collectively wrote hundreds of pages of impressive narrative and analytical work throughout the course.

Students celebrated the completion of CRIM 461, a criminology course taught by Dr. Jim Nolan and Danielle, at an Inside-Out ceremony this month. Readings focused on defining criminal acts, explaining reasons for perpetrating criminal acts, and exploring public policies that respond to the threat and existence of criminal behavior.

Students also finished WRIT 490 with Dr.  Nathalie Singh-Corcoran this semester. After WRIT 490, students will be trained to offer writing feedback and tutoring.

FCLT 380: The Holocaust in East European Literature and Film with Dr. DiBartolomeo will begin in the spring, as will Math 122: Quantitative Skills & Reasoning with Dr. Jennifer Kearns.

Students in the cohort will hear more details in the coming weeks.

Alumni Updates

Inaugural cohort member Carl Lee was released on parole in September. Inaugural cohort member Franko will also be released on parole later this month. Congratulations to you both!

Dr. Katy Ryan is on leave and has been working with Georgetown University’s Prisons and Justice Initiative as their Director of Education. In November, she attended the National Conference on Higher Education in Prison and co-facilitated a discussion on abolition feminist and anti-racist teaching in prison. She received travel funding from the Laughing Gull Foundation and HEPI.

Our friend and HEPI Reentry Coordinator Darrin Lester passed away in October. We mourn this enormous loss and continue our work in his honor. Thank you, Darrin, for always inspiring us.

Suggested Reading List

Starting this month, we will offer reading suggestions from HEPI members.

• Suggested by Simeon
  As a Man Thinketh by James Allen
  
  
• Suggested by Ann Pancake
  The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
  Disgruntled by Asali Solomon
  Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings by Joy Harjo
  Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward
  Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko
  
  
• Suggested by Rayna
  Counting Descent by Clint Smith

HEPI Highlight

It’s difficult to narrow down a favorite part. It’s the entire experience of learning, interacting, and working towards a common goal with a group of intelligent, open minded individuals. I am amazed at the level of knowledge the outside students possess at such young ages. My favorite part is walking into the room greeted by a bunch of smiles. It’s witnessing the collective growth among my peers. It’s all of it.

The biggest challenge for me is the writing assignments–there’s always a writing assignment. This challenge for me is based on two difficulties. First, I’ve been out of school for a long time, so there’s certain skills I’ve lost over the years due to lack of use. Second, I’m sort of an introvert in the sense of expressing my thoughts and emotions on paper. I have a lot of thoughts on issues, but to put pen to paper and express them–real challenge.

My favorite memory was during a Think Tank session when Dr. Nolan led the ice breaker “If you have… like me, switch seats.” Everyone who related to the speaker would have to run around trying to find a new seat, and the person left standing had to lead the next round. No one wanted to be the one left standing. At one point, Dr. Katy and Dr. Laura were scrambling for the same seat–Dr. Laura lost. She had the look on her face, “I really don’t want to be standing here.” I laughed so hard. Afterward I thought to myself, we all have something in common regardless of age, gender, race or circumstances, incarcerated  or free. Everyone was laughing together, smiles all around.