To the Point
The Value of Giving Prisoners an Education
America's crackdown on crime is giving way to concern about the high-cost of mass incarceration. President Obama wants to give Pell Grants for college to inmates in prison — to find out if higher education makes them less likely to commit new crimes. Researchers say he already knows the answer.
By Warren Olney • • 52m ListenAmerica's crackdown on crime is giving way to concern about the high-cost of mass incarceration. President Obama wants to give Pell Grants for college to inmates in prison — to find out if higher education makes them less likely to commit new crimes. Researchers say he already knows the answer.
Later on the program, we go inside a California prison class to hear what college-level education is like behind bars.
In this episode
3 stories'Star Wars' Pushes Box Office Boundaries
Hollywood set a box-office record two years ago, but it may not survive -- partly because of Star Wars: The Force Awakens , which is already breaking individual records this season. Matthew Belloni is executive editor at the Hollywood Reporter .
Read the story7 minPell Grants for Prisoners?
Pell Grants are for students who can't afford college. In the 1990's, America cracked down on crime, and President Bill Clinton signed a ban on Pell Grants for inmates in federal and state prisons. Then this year, President Obama plans to lift the ban — which he's allowed to do in the interests of gathering data. But the data is already in.
Read the story34 minUsing Prison Education to Fight Recidivism in California
This year, both liberals and conservatives have agreed that it's time to end the "mass incarceration" produced by the "crackdown on crime" of 20 years ago. KCRW is exploring how California is handling the "re-entry" of prisoners back into society.
Read the story10 min
