Supporting Students After Incarceration: The Higher Education in Reentry Reimagined Initiative
By Evan Goldstein, Senior Policy Associate
Many incarcerated students are unable to finish their degree before they are released, meaning they must continue their college education after returning to the community to earn the degree they worked toward. To address barriers to reenrolling, the Higher Education in Reentry Reimagined initiative is working to bridge the needs of formerly incarcerated students with the services of educators and providers.
Through the dedication of education advocates, academic institutions, and community partners, the number of college-in-prison programs are growing across the country. And the benefits are overwhelmingly positive. Studies have found that participation in college in prison reduces recidivism following release by at least 66 percent; education has also been shown to deepen a sense of community, commitment to family, and increase motivation—which is a helpful foundation for all people who are adjusting to life after incarceration and looking to forge their new path.
Studies have found that participation in college in prison reduces recidivism following release by at least 66 percent.
But for many, a key part of this journey means completing their degree after release, which can come with a whole new set of challenges.
In New York, the College-in-Prison Reentry Initiative (CIP)—funded by the Criminal Justice Investment Initiative (CJII), in partnership between the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, CUNY ISLG, and other partners, including The Institute for Justice and Opportunity and SUNY’s Office of Higher Education in Prison (SUNY OHEP)—worked to not only expand college opportunities for incarcerated people, but to understand what makes programs have a lasting impact both during incarceration and after a student is released. Over 900 people were served through CIP in 7 institutions across 17 prisons statewide, four of which had no prior college programs.
Though demand has increased for college in prison, many incarcerated students are unable to complete it by the time they are released, meaning they must enroll in college in the community to finish their degree. To increase reenrollment and ease the challenges that come with continuing college after incarceration, the Mayor’s Office of Economic Opportunity funded Public Policy Lab (PPL) to partner with SUNY OHEP and CUNY ISLG to build upon CIP’s impact by co-designing a new approach to academic reentry that addresses the complex needs of people returning from incarceration and facilitates their return to higher education in the community. This initiative was named Higher Education in Reentry Reimagined (HERR).
In the second half of 2024, HERR partners worked to develop an approach and accompanying resources to support current and aspiring students in transitioning into CUNY and other NYC-based colleges after incarceration. Using human-centered research and design, PPL collaborated with formerly incarcerated students and others involved in the system to identify the challenges of enrolling in college in the community after release.
This research included examining the best practice literature and synthesizing over 20 stakeholder interviews, which predominantly included people directly impacted by incarceration who have participated in or aspire to enroll in college. A common theme PPL centered on is the interconnected barriers to continuing college education—whether it had to do with stigma and identity, career guidance and professional development, or competing priorities after release. HERR used these findings to inform a suite of products (see below).
“It was an interesting time learning how to juggle becoming educated in prison because prison has a stigma that you don't really go to prison to get educated. You're in prison because you did, I guess for lack of better terms, uneducated things or uneducated decisions, but in prison it's like a stigma, you know?”
- formerly incarcerated HERR Interviewee
To raise awareness of these issues, PPL also produced an educational video highlighting the challenges faced by formerly incarcerated students as they navigate reentry and higher education. This powerful video grounded the real-world experiences of students who face significant barriers to enroll in college after incarceration.
Strengthening Collaboration Across Providers
Based on these research findings, one of the core goals PPL aims to address is enhancing partnerships between reentry service providers and higher education institutions. PPL’s research found that all too often, these networks operate in silos, making it difficult for individuals to navigate the transition from incarceration to academia. To remove these silos and better support students, PPL and stakeholders co-designed a year-long discussion series called the Roundtable for Higher Education in Reentry Reimagined (HERR): A Circle Series tailored for service providers and students.
“I think that that's another big learning curve that I see with students is (...) How do I begin to keep track of all this? This is my [university] email. How do I even access it? It's overwhelming. And if you couple that with, you know, not having access to technology for a period of time, it can also be a challenge.”
- university staff
This unique approach, inspired by Indigenous practices and restorative justice principles, will help create space for substantive dialogue through deep listening, equitable sharing, and meaningful relationship-building between service providers, educators, and formerly incarcerated students. The practice aims to go beyond superficial discussions and instead, forge connections that can lead to enduring, trust-based collaborations in support of improving systems for legal system-impacted students.
In early February 2025, PPL kicked off HERR at PPL’s office in Brooklyn. Formerly incarcerated students, service providers, and other partners broke ground to discuss the challenges of college persistence and goals for closer collaboration across academic reentry services. Participants agreed to continue the dialogue every other month for the year to make progress. In bringing these diverse perspectives together, the work has already begun to remove barriers to higher college enrollment and persistence for students’ post-release, leading to greater degree attainment and opportunities beyond incarceration.
“I couldn't wait for my son to see me walk. For my kids to see me come to the commencement, see me with the cap and gown and see his old man, even though he was incarcerated, doing something with his time."
- formerly incarcerated HERR Interviewee