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Washington State Institute for Public Policy

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Publications

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Postsecondary Education Programs in Washington Prisons: An Analysis of Post-Release Education Outcomes
Open Publication PDF

Julia Cramer, Colin Gibson - October 2024


In 2021, the Washington State Legislature directed WSIPP to produce a series of reports to “understand whether participation in postsecondary education (PSE) while incarcerated contributes to greater enrollment and completion of postsecondary education and reduced recidivism post release.” This first report examines the association between participation in PSE programs in adult prisons and enrollment and completion in community and technical colleges (CTC) in Washington after release.

The Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) and the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) have long collaborated to provide most of the education programming in prisons. In this report, we focus on DOC-SBCTC contracted PSE programs, which include workforce training or academic programs that lead to a vocational certificate, workforce associate degree, direct transfer associate degree, or bachelor's degree.

We find that participation in PSE in prison is associated with a higher likelihood of enrolling in a CTC after release. However, among PSE participants and non-participants who went on to enroll in a CTC after release from prison, there were no differences between their retention rates, GPAs, accumulated credits, or probability of credential receipt. When considering overall credential receipt during and after incarceration, though, PSE participants were more likely to hold a credential than non-participants.

A final report in October 2027 will expand upon this report, examining how recent changes to postsecondary correctional education in prisons have influenced post-release education outcomes and recidivism.

Download:   Report    Executive Summary  
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Legislation