I’m deeply upset by the number of people who are incarcerated in the United States, especially since many of those people are minorities, and many of those minorities are black.
Problem: Mass incarcerated individuals have little to no access to higher educational resources beyond vocational and training certificates.
Solution: Bring higher education to those who are mass incarcerated.
While there are a few opportunities for incarcerated individuals to obtain limited education: vocational courses, trade certificates, associates degrees, licensures, etc., I doubt this is enough to make them viable candidates at succeeding at life once let out.
Provide incarcerated individuals with necessary life tools: education on mental health, finance skills, job skills, etc.
Design question:
How to teach the mass incarcerated? Implement programs to pursue higher education in prison.
Education provides more opportunities.
Constraints:
Also consider the quality of education that would be available to those incarcerated. Like I’d rather not have it if it’s not good. Is it possible for colleges and universities to partner with local or state prisons?
Lack of funding limits the resources available to those who are incarcerated. I wonder if there is a way to bring higher education opportunities to those who are incarcerated and if so, to what capacity. I want those who are incarcerated to have a better outlook on life and
empower those who are marginalized and forgotten by giving them a chance to receive education.
Impact:
Not just preparing students for jobs but teaching them to think creatively and convert smart ideas into tools and services that benefit a wide range of communities. —> is it possible to do the same with those who are incarcerated? HOW?
Skills & deep thinking
Less of an avenue towards employment and more as a life long commitment to personal growth and inquiry. —> do the same for incarcerated
Thinking of how to improve society rather than one own’s life in regards to education.
References:
http://ecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=jcshesa
What sprung to mind when reading this thoughtful submission was the prison strike currently happening, and almost no media outlet covering it:
https://theintercept.com/2016/09/16/the-largest-prison-strike-in-u-s-history-enters-its-second-week/
Evidenced by many of the comments in a few of your references, people find no worth in a prisoner, even though some would admit that their conditions are unjust.
The startup pigeon.ly, which was chosen to join Ycombinator recently, was started by a former inmate who wanted to provide better services for prisoners. There may be insights to gleam from that process / story on how to best position a solution for a population so many ignore. https://techcrunch.com/2015/03/24/pigeon-ly/
It may be challenging, but finding former or current prisoners who have completed or are completing a Higher Ed degree would be a coup.
Great use of references and data to describe your problem / design challenge.
Looking forward to discussing this more with you.