56 women at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl were recently honored for completing college-level courses in U.S. history, public speaking, English composition and American literature in the Prison-to-College Pipeline Program, funded by the Mississippi Humanities Council.
The Prison-to-College Pipeline is a college-level course for prisoners who hold high school diplomas or GEDs, with course content designed around inmates’ interests. Prisoners who participate in the course have the opportunity to earn college credit and prove to themselves they have the ability to pursue a college education after their release.
Professors Patrick Alexander and Otis Pickett launched the Prison-to-College Pipeline Program at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman in June 2014 with a grant from the University of Mississippi’s College of Liberal Arts. After two successful summers at Parchman, they expanded the program to women incarcerated at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl with support from the Mississippi Humanities Council and Mississippi College.
