The Prisoner Reentry Institute (PRI) at John Jay College of Criminal Justice released the report, Mapping the Landscape of Higher Education in New York State Prisons, which is the first of its kind in examining both the history and scope of college-in-prison programs across the state. The report describes the existing programs and incorporates the perspectives of DOCCS (Department of Corrections and Community Supervision) officials, college administrators, and incarcerated students.
The report was derived from interviews with DOCCS officials and college-in-prison program administrators, observations of programs, and surveys completed by incarcerated students. In addition to describing the existing higher education programs in New York State prisons, the report offers recommendations to increase access to college for more people while they are incarcerated, make the programs more comparable in their academic offerings, and connect students leaving prison to reentry supports in the community which would enable them to continue their education after release.