Arizona inmates can now earn associate degrees in prison

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 15 Oct, 02:02 · Archive

Arizona Western College has launched a programme allowing incarcerated individuals to earn associate degrees at the Arizona State Prison Complex–Yuma.

Arizona Western College has launched a new Prison Education Programme, created through a partnership with the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry. The programme began this week with 13 students enrolled at the Arizona State Prison Complex–Yuma, making Arizona Western one of only four colleges in Arizona offering associate degrees to incarcerated individuals.

Students take online courses designed by college faculty in eight-week sessions, with no more than two courses at a time, though they can still complete four courses in a semester. Inmates can earn an Associate of Arts degree within two years, with all credits fully transferable to Arizona's state universities.

The initiative grew from an encounter between prison staff and an 18-year-old inmate who feared reoffending after release. This prompted the prison to begin teaching trades such as welding, which expanded to forklift licensing and eventually college degrees. Ruben Rosas-Parra, warden at the complex, described the programme as giving inmates 'something to get started' after release, when 'a lot of doors seem to be permanently closed'.

How it is being reported

• ‘They deserve a second chance’: Yuma inmates can now earn their associate degreeArizona Western College is now one of only four colleges in Arizona that offer associate degrees to incarcerated individuals.KOLD · 15 Oct, 01:26
• ‘They deserve a second chance’: Yuma inmates can now earn their associate degreeArizona Western College is now one of only four colleges in Arizona that offer associate degrees to incarcerated individuals.Azfamily · 15 Oct, 01:26

In this story: Arizona Western College · Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry · Arizona State Prison Complex–Yuma · Dr. Reetika Dhawan · Ruben Rosas-Parra

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