Assignment 3

Running head: PROGRAM OVERVIEW 1

Running head: PROGRAM OVERVIEW 3

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Program Overview

Introduction

Imprisonment remains a problem in America, more so in Mississippi, which is among the states with high imprisonment rates (1,020 per 100,000 residents) (Initiative, n.d.). An example of a relatively reasonable initiative in this direction is the Prison-to-College Pipeline Program (PTCPP), initiated by the University of Mississippi. This paper discusses the mission of the program, the population that this program targets, the services offered, the need of the community served, the benefits of evaluation, the evaluation models suitable for this program, ethical issues that are likely to be encountered while evaluating this program, and the planning processes suitable for this program.

Criminal Justice Program

PTCPP is a university-community engagement program started in 2014 by Patrick Elliot Alexander & Otis W. Pickett (The University of Mississippi, 2021). The organization, situated in Mississippi, emerged as a direct response to the high rates of incarceration and little college education for the incarcerated. It offers college courses in correctional settings for college credit, such as at Parchman Penitentiary and Central Mississippi Correctional Facility. It is centered on disciplines related to the study of human subjects, such as literature, history, and creative writing, and is conducted by university professors in a discussion-based format (Alexander & Pickett, 2018).

Mission and Population Served

The mission of the PTCPP is to foster college education in prison and to combat education invisibility that characterizes the American prison system. The ideas are centered on enabling change in learners who will embrace social commitment, involvement, and character adjustment. Namely, it concerns inmates of the State of Mississippi's facilities who have attained a high school diploma or GED and are willing to continue their education in college (The University of Mississippi, n.d.). These students are mainly from marginalized communities who rarely have a chance to continue their studies or find formal employment.

Services

The PTCPP offers humanities-based, college-level credit-bearing courses under the guidance of university instructors. Students learn at a particular level, and the program is challenging for those who have not been incarcerated. It also instructs students to write their works and participate in public scholarly activities, thereby enhancing their academic and civic personality (Alexander & Pickett, 2018). The approved PTCPP courses will also highlight issues related to civil rights, the history of African American society, African American literature, and creative writing, thereby aligning with education and transformation.

Community Needs

As described above, the PTCPP directly focuses on addressing a concern that is crucial to the society of Mississippi; that is, the under-education of prisoners. As the study indicates, Mississippi is one of the leading states in the US with the highest incarceration rates, and most of the incarcerated people are black and have low household income (Zamani-Gallaher & Fuller, 2016). A literature review also revealed that education plays a significant role in reducing recidivism. For instance, Halkovic (2014) argues that other college-in-prison programs are more effective in decreasing recidivism than any other correctional education. Additionally, education enhances employment opportunities, fosters family relationships, and alleviates the government's tax burden in cases where inmates are provided with education (Halkovic, 2014).

Evaluation Benefits

To achieve the goal of understanding the effect and areas for improvement of PTCPP, program evaluation is crucial. An evaluation can occur in terms of output, which provides factual data on student achievement, completion rates, and recidivism rates. It also provides efficiency measurements, identifies operational issues, and offers suggestions for improvement. Routine assessment would also ensure that the program is on track to achieve its objectives and targets, taking into account the evolving education standards. In addition, a comprehensive assessment can also reveal program effectiveness to funding sources, legislators, and the public, which may ensure the program's sustainability (Alexander & Pickett, 2018).

Evaluation Models

One of the compatible models that can be used to assess the PTCPP is the utilization-focused (UFE) model, as its primary focus is on the use of evaluation results by key stakeholders (Patton, 2008). As a research partnership between the university faculty and correctional institutions, UFE ensures that the conclusions drawn are easily implementable within the university and correctional contexts. Secondly, it can help define goals, inputs, activities, outputs, and the long-term outcomes of the program, utilizing the logic model, which facilitates the organization of the data collection and analysis process.

Ethical Considerations

It is essential to note that the principles of ethics guide the evaluation of any educational program in prison. Since inmates are a unique/vulnerable category of people, principles of informed consent, confidentiality, and voluntary participation would have to be unavoidable. Evaluators must not appear to force a respondent to answer any questions, as respondents often have limited decision-making power within correctional facilities. It is also crucial that the evaluation does not interfere with the learning process or harm any of the participants. There should be an emphasis on cultural sensitivity and respect for the participant’s self-determination throughout the entire evaluation process (Zamani-Gallaher & Fuller, 2016).

Initial Steps

If given the opportunity to participate in an externally conducted evaluation, the initial procedure would be to consult with various stakeholders, including program directors, faculty, correctional staff, and learners. Next, I would review any documents that the program has created regarding its development, offerings, and past statistics. I would then create a Program logic to design the program, aiming to choose the most desirable outcome. Some of the approaches to data gathering include questionnaires completed by students, interviews with students and learners, and performance indicators. Lastly, I would establish a timeline to complement the outlined goals, acquire Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, and establish standard operating procedures to maintain high levels of ethics and research credibility.

Conclusion

In this case, the Prison-to-College Pipeline Program offers an effective solution to mass incarceration, particularly in terms of education and human dignity. Share involves itself in providing college-level education for prisoners as a way of helping the most neglected society in Mississippi, due to a lack of educational facilities. Therefore, although aimed at students, the program also impacts recidivism and changes the lives of people in the community. By designing and conducting a well-structured and ethical evaluation plan, PTCPP can strengthen its position, demonstrate its sustainability and efficiency in the evolving perception of imprisonment and possibilities.

References

Alexander, P., & Pickett, O. W. (2018). The Prison-to-College Pipeline Program: An Ethical, Education-Based Response to Mass Incarceration in Mississippi. The Journal of African American History, 103(4), 702–716. https://doi.org/10.1086/699955

Halkovic, A. (2014). Redefining Possible: Re-Visioning the Prison-to-College Pipeline. Equity & Excellence in Education, 47(4), 494–512. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684.2014.959284

Initiative, P. P. (n.d.). Mississippi profile. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/profiles/MS.html

Patton, M. Q. (2008). Utilization-Focused Evaluation. SAGE Publications. https://www.academia.edu/94268750/Utilization_Focused_Evaluation

The University of Mississippi. (2021). The PTCPP at Parchman, Part 1 - Prison-to-College Pipeline Program. https://ptcpp.olemiss.edu/the-ptcpp-at-parchman-part-1/

The University of Mississippi. (n.d.). Home Page. Retrieved from Prison-to-College Pipeline Program https://ptcpp.olemiss.edu/

Zamani-Gallaher, E. M., & Fuller, K. (2016). Altering the Pipeline to Prison and Pathways to Postsecondary Education. Feature on Research and Leadership. Vol. 1, No. 1. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED574524

Running head: PROGRAM OVERVIEW 1

Running head: PROGRAM OVERVIEW 3

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Program Overview

Introduction

Imprisonment remains a problem in America, more so in Mississippi, which is among the states with high imprisonment rates (1,020 per 100,000 residents) (Initiative, n.d.). An example of a relatively reasonable initiative in this direction is the Prison-to-College Pipeline Program (PTCPP), initiated by the University of Mississippi. This paper discusses the mission of the program, the population that this program targets, the services offered, the need of the community served, the benefits of evaluation, the evaluation models suitable for this program, ethical issues that are likely to be encountered while evaluating this program, and the planning processes suitable for this program.

Criminal Justice Program

PTCPP is a university-community engagement program started in 2014 by Patrick Elliot Alexander & Otis W. Pickett (The University of Mississippi, 2021). The organization, situated in Mississippi, emerged as a direct response to the high rates of incarceration and little college education for the incarcerated. It offers college courses in correctional settings for college credit, such as at Parchman Penitentiary and Central Mississippi Correctional Facility. It is centered on disciplines related to the study of human subjects, such as literature, history, and creative writing, and is conducted by university professors in a discussion-based format (Alexander & Pickett, 2018).

Mission and Population Served

The mission of the PTCPP is to foster college education in prison and to combat education invisibility that characterizes the American prison system. The ideas are centered on enabling change in learners who will embrace social commitment, involvement, and character adjustment. Namely, it concerns inmates of the State of Mississippi's facilities who have attained a high school diploma or GED and are willing to continue their education in college (The University of Mississippi, n.d.). These students are mainly from marginalized communities who rarely have a chance to continue their studies or find formal employment.

Services

The PTCPP offers humanities-based, college-level credit-bearing courses under the guidance of university instructors. Students learn at a particular level, and the program is challenging for those who have not been incarcerated. It also instructs students to write their works and participate in public scholarly activities, thereby enhancing their academic and civic personality (Alexander & Pickett, 2018). The approved PTCPP courses will also highlight issues related to civil rights, the history of African American society, African American literature, and creative writing, thereby aligning with education and transformation.

Community Needs

As described above, the PTCPP directly focuses on addressing a concern that is crucial to the society of Mississippi; that is, the under-education of prisoners. As the study indicates, Mississippi is one of the leading states in the US with the highest incarceration rates, and most of the incarcerated people are black and have low household income (Zamani-Gallaher & Fuller, 2016). A literature review also revealed that education plays a significant role in reducing recidivism. For instance, Halkovic (2014) argues that other college-in-prison programs are more effective in decreasing recidivism than any other correctional education. Additionally, education enhances employment opportunities, fosters family relationships, and alleviates the government's tax burden in cases where inmates are provided with education (Halkovic, 2014).

Evaluation Benefits

To achieve the goal of understanding the effect and areas for improvement of PTCPP, program evaluation is crucial. An evaluation can occur in terms of output, which provides factual data on student achievement, completion rates, and recidivism rates. It also provides efficiency measurements, identifies operational issues, and offers suggestions for improvement. Routine assessment would also ensure that the program is on track to achieve its objectives and targets, taking into account the evolving education standards. In addition, a comprehensive assessment can also reveal program effectiveness to funding sources, legislators, and the public, which may ensure the program's sustainability (Alexander & Pickett, 2018).

Evaluation Models

One of the compatible models that can be used to assess the PTCPP is the utilization-focused (UFE) model, as its primary focus is on the use of evaluation results by key stakeholders (Patton, 2008). As a research partnership between the university faculty and correctional institutions, UFE ensures that the conclusions drawn are easily implementable within the university and correctional contexts. Secondly, it can help define goals, inputs, activities, outputs, and the long-term outcomes of the program, utilizing the logic model, which facilitates the organization of the data collection and analysis process.

Ethical Considerations

It is essential to note that the principles of ethics guide the evaluation of any educational program in prison. Since inmates are a unique/vulnerable category of people, principles of informed consent, confidentiality, and voluntary participation would have to be unavoidable. Evaluators must not appear to force a respondent to answer any questions, as respondents often have limited decision-making power within correctional facilities. It is also crucial that the evaluation does not interfere with the learning process or harm any of the participants. There should be an emphasis on cultural sensitivity and respect for the participant’s self-determination throughout the entire evaluation process (Zamani-Gallaher & Fuller, 2016).

Initial Steps

If given the opportunity to participate in an externally conducted evaluation, the initial procedure would be to consult with various stakeholders, including program directors, faculty, correctional staff, and learners. Next, I would review any documents that the program has created regarding its development, offerings, and past statistics. I would then create a Program logic to design the program, aiming to choose the most desirable outcome. Some of the approaches to data gathering include questionnaires completed by students, interviews with students and learners, and performance indicators. Lastly, I would establish a timeline to complement the outlined goals, acquire Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, and establish standard operating procedures to maintain high levels of ethics and research credibility.

Conclusion

In this case, the Prison-to-College Pipeline Program offers an effective solution to mass incarceration, particularly in terms of education and human dignity. Share involves itself in providing college-level education for prisoners as a way of helping the most neglected society in Mississippi, due to a lack of educational facilities. Therefore, although aimed at students, the program also impacts recidivism and changes the lives of people in the community. By designing and conducting a well-structured and ethical evaluation plan, PTCPP can strengthen its position, demonstrate its sustainability and efficiency in the evolving perception of imprisonment and possibilities.

References

Alexander, P., & Pickett, O. W. (2018). The Prison-to-College Pipeline Program: An Ethical, Education-Based Response to Mass Incarceration in Mississippi. The Journal of African American History, 103(4), 702–716. https://doi.org/10.1086/699955

Halkovic, A. (2014). Redefining Possible: Re-Visioning the Prison-to-College Pipeline. Equity & Excellence in Education, 47(4), 494–512. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684.2014.959284

Initiative, P. P. (n.d.). Mississippi profile. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/profiles/MS.html

Patton, M. Q. (2008). Utilization-Focused Evaluation. SAGE Publications. https://www.academia.edu/94268750/Utilization_Focused_Evaluation

The University of Mississippi. (2021). The PTCPP at Parchman, Part 1 - Prison-to-College Pipeline Program. https://ptcpp.olemiss.edu/the-ptcpp-at-parchman-part-1/

The University of Mississippi. (n.d.). Home Page. Retrieved from Prison-to-College Pipeline Program https://ptcpp.olemiss.edu/

Zamani-Gallaher, E. M., & Fuller, K. (2016). Altering the Pipeline to Prison and Pathways to Postsecondary Education. Feature on Research and Leadership. Vol. 1, No. 1. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED574524