HIGHER EDUCATION COSTS FOR STATE INMATES

I am the Senate sponsor of this House bill sponsored by Representative Debbie Benefield. The bill allows inmates in state correctional institutions to qualify for scholarships for college-level academic programs. Currently, inmates are not allowed to apply for scholarships for higher education, even if they qualify academically. Inmates can pay for college classes by themselves, but unless they have a family who is willing to pay the tuition, most cannot afford it on the 60¢ per day they earn in prison.
 
Many of our state prisons have agreements with local community colleges or state colleges to provide inmates with correspondence courses, or in some cases, on-site courses. The director of the Department of Corrections says that having inmates take college courses has been found to be an excellent method of preventing recidivism, as well as preventing violence in the prisons. Our state correctional institutions provide GED programs for inmates at no charge, for the same reasons. This bill would make it easier for inmates to continue their education beyond the high school level.