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Restoring Prisoners' Access to Education Reduces Recidivism

James McWilliams

April 16, 2019 |

Pacific Standard |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Hawaii

A piece of bipartisan legislation was introduced to the United States’ Senate in February 2018 that would give individuals in incarceration access to Pell Grants, thus increasing their college education opportunities. While the bill was not enacted, it is part of an ongoing process of reinstating access to Pell Grants for prisoners from the Obama administration, who gave limited access in its Second Chance program. This bill speaks to the largely bipartisan cultural shift that embraces the need to invest in correctional education in order to prevent recidivism.

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Graffiti punished by reading - 'It worked!' says prosecutor

Emma Jane Kirby

April 16, 2019 |

BBC |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Ashburn, Virginia

After graffitiing a historic landmark with swastikas and racist phrases, a juvenile prosecutor chose to educate rather than punish the perpetrators. Each teen was given a list of 35 books that covered topics like race, religion, and culture, and they had to pick 12 and do monthly assignments for a year. The books included titles like, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou, and Night, by Elie Wiesel. After the year, the learning opportunity given to the teens showed demonstrable success.

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Changes Coming To Housing Program For Former Inmates

Edward O'Brien

April 15, 2019 |

Montana Public Radio |

Multi-Media |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Missoula, Montana

The state of Montana helps former prison inmates find and pay for stable housing and to improve their job-hunting skills after their release. The pilot program is praised both by former inmates, for the support they received, and landlords, who now have an incentive to rent to this population.

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How Norway designed a more humane prison

Gina Barton Christophe Haubursin

April 12, 2019 |

Vox |

Video |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: Norway, Halden

Halden Prison in Norway has re-designed itself so that the look and feel of prison life isn’t an added punishment to restricted freedom. Designers took into consideration the role campus design plays in promoting or disrupting guard-inmate relations and created a campus that promotes community rather than violence and isolation. Also included was landscaping, more natural light, and the use of softer materials, like glass and wood, instead of metal and brick.

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Where Homeownership Starts at $1 per Square Foot

Carla Bell

April 09, 2019 |

Yes! Magazine |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Detroit, Michigan

In Detroit, a new program is offering homeownership for just $1 per square foot to marginalized and vulnerable people, including those who are unhoused, people with disabilities, or the formerly incarcerated. After proving an income of between $7,000 and $12,000 and the abilities to pay rent, as well as financial classes and volunteering, people can qualify to live in tiny homes, which are then handed off to the resident mortgage-free after seven years. So far, the program has built six tiny homes.

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Mass. prisons start offering medication to treat addiction

Felice J. Freyer

April 02, 2019 |

The Boston Globe |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Massachusetts

Newly passed legislation in Massachusetts is allowing prisons to take a step towards managing inmates health care by letting a third party company administer medication that helps treat opioid addiction. This step towards bridging the gap between punishment and help, also focuses on reducing racial inequalities and rates of addiction-caused deaths.

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Male aggressors in El Salvador get prison, and masculinity class

Anna-Catherine Brigida

March 30, 2019 |

Al Jazeera |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: El Salvador, San Salvador

Preventing sexual violence against women begins with men. In a country faced with a high incidence of gender-based violence, Masculinities for Peace, a non-governmental organization, is working to change the norms of El Salvador’s patriarchal culture. Going beyond punishment to encourage long-term behavioral change, the NGO provides rehabilitative courses on masculinity to convicted offenders.

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DAs Have This Blueprint for Rethinking Criminal Justice

Emily Nonko

March 28, 2019 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

Formerly incarcerated individuals, community leaders, and members of San Francisco’s District Attorney’s office, have joined forces to create a collaborative advisory board. The board meets to share re-entry challenges and successes, discuss the DA's work, and develop a deeper understanding of systemic crime in the city. From conversations about mental health to poverty, members are helping create new policies and opportunities for those still incarcerated.

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Native justice: How tribal values shape Judge Abby's court

Henry Gass

March 27, 2019 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Yurok Reservation, United States, Klamath, California

Across the country, tribal courts are seeking to break the cycle of recidivism and instead focus their efforts on rehabilitation and community. Judge Abinanti’s Yurok Tribal Court in California applies traditional Yurok values – responsibility, renewal, and restorative justice – in a way that builds compassion and addresses the deep trauma held by the people entering her court.

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‘‘You Got Your High School Diploma?''

Elizabeth Weil

March 27, 2019 |

The California Sunday Magazine |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

Five Keys Charter School was the first in the U.S. to open in a jail. Now, the school operates a bus, or traveling classroom, that parks in San Francisco's most under-resourced communities to offer residents, many offenders, a second or third or seventh flexible chance at earning a high school diploma. Journalist Elizabeth Weil writes, "The school was created with the understanding that incarceration is part of life for their students." The director of the Bard Prison Initiative adds that Five Keys uses the infrastructure of jail “to do positive good rather than just mitigate harm.”

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