So, you know, Bard has some re-entry services, mainly job placement and career development. On November 24, 1990, James Wiley armed himself with a shotgun and brutally shot down his stepmother and two brothers in their home in Thermopolis, Wyoming. And I think we should just start being really clear about the scale of the commitment, first of all, that we're making to you and, secondly, that we expect of you. 1. We always have to be mindful of how those people like myself are returning back to their communities and back to their families. Colleges or universities partnering in the Consortium. I finished my degree in the spring of 2018. We can remove the first video in the list to add this one. And it has had a profound impact on my personality and just the way that I move through the world today. The documentary prompts viewers to consider the importance of higher education in prison. These programs transform the negative impacts of criminal punishment and create radical inroads of access and opportunity to higher learning. to What will the field of college-in-prison look like? I'm going to ask each of you to give me your first impressions here. The doc is also a moving portrait of individuals determined to defy the odds and build a better future for themselves.. So currently, I work as a program specialist with the Democracy Fund of Open Society Foundations, which is one of the biggest philanthropic organizations in the world. After graduation, there were like, 30, on each side of the shower room just waiting for you. BPI alumni overwhelmingly go home to their communities and give back in ways that positively impact the lives of others. Incarcerated men and women in New York State are admitted to the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI), one of the most rigorous co, Sebastian, Dyjuan and Tamara reflect on the difficult circumstances of their childhood, while the debate team prepares to, The debate union faces their rival across the river, West Point. After the federal Pell ban in 1994, New York implemented a ban on TAP eligibility in 1995. Im trying to act younger than my age, so I sometimes listen to trap music. He lives alone in an apartment in Sunnyside, Queens, which he chose for its proximity to the foundation, just across the East River. "We all have. And I went to prison for 12 years at the age of 19, 20 for assault. YOON: So I believe that, you know, the degree is just a piece of paper, and I think there's too much significance tied to the degree. TATRO: Having a liberal arts education has made me a much deeper thinker. Watch the full film and explore classroom-ready resources and activities. And I never had really thought about going to college until, all of a sudden, there was this thing that I heard about in prison called the Bard Prison Initiative. And today, there are 300 students in six facilities in New York state, mostly men, but there's one facility for women as well. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. One of the toughest parts of living in Sunnyside, Mr. Hall said, is finding a vacant laundry machine. But I usually put on jazz or R&B. Sometimes, it could take six hours. I mean, both - from the documentary, it seems that both of you had supportive families. You know, what's striking about this program is that - I think a lot of people who think about ways that prisons can help incarcerated people get jobs when they get out of prison is to provide vocational training - you know, teach people to be welders or auto mechanics or, you know, stuff like that. GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. And this is not obviously the happiest part of your life, but - and you can say as much as you want about it, but I think the audience would be interested in knowing a bit about what your life was like coming up. Most had circumstances early in their life, which were really, really tough, heartbreaking in many cases. YOON: I would say that all my friends right now are my peers from the BPI program, and our network is really growing. And one of the things that I saw as I watched the four episodes - and this reminded me of - I taught middle school and high school many, many years ago. Neither had been in a maximum security . I'm an uncle. Hes a regular at the local Starbucks, where he takes his coffee with cinnamon, not too much sugar.. And I said, that's what I'm going to do, and I was in a different facility at that time - easier said than done. The PBSand Emmy-nominated documentary "College Behind Bars" seeks to showcase the students of BPI as well as the need for more prison college programs throughout the country. I'm Terry Gross. It is a marvelous new film by @KenBurns, @LynnNovick, and @sbotstein! This is a scene where there's a group of brand-new students at the Eastern Correctional Facility, which is a maximum security facility in New York, just been admitted to the program after a competitive admissions process, and what we see is a not terribly large classroom and a group of 15 to 20 men in blue jumpsuits seated at typical classroom desks. We're going to start coursework Monday morning. You are a prisoner and you are a student," Giovanni Hernandez tells Brut. Recidivism rates skyrocketed for a variety of reasons, including this, and slowly, some privately funded programs started to come back in. Funding for College Behind Bars is provided by Bank of America; PBS; Ford Foundation / JustFilms; National Endowment for the Humanities; Meg & Tomas Bergstrand; Regina K. Scully; The Lise , Find standards-aligned teaching resources for. And, you know, we came to feel that it was important for them to - and they also felt it was important for them to explain themselves, how they see themselves, where they've been, where they are, through the lens of the education that they've been getting and their perspectives that have shifted over time. DAVIES: Dyjuan Tatro, what was it like for you? Do they have a place as opposed to, you know, this really rigorous academic program? The series follows the inmates as they give birth and raise their children behind bars. The subjects and filmmakers reveal the inspiring story of how the power of education can change lives in College Behind Bars. The journey to bring "College Behind Bars" started in 2012, when Novick and producer Sarah Botstein were invited to give a lecture for BPI students. By Tyler Kendall January 17, 2020 / 2:19 PM / CBS News Dameon Stackhouse was several years into his. DAVIES: You know, I'd like, Sebastian and Dyjuan, to hear a little bit about how - reconciling with your families. (SOUNDBITE OF STEFON HARRIS AND BLACKOUT'S "DAT DERE"). And then they're like, strip. The Bard Prison Initiative (BPI) works to redefine the availability, affordability, and expectations typically associated with higher education in America. Like, that's who I am. They spoke with FRESH AIR's Dave Davies. So once that happened, almost all those programs vanished - went from about 800 programs to fewer than 10. And you can learn grammar. NOVICK: I'd just add that one of the really remarkable things about this program is that the admissions process is looking for people who have kind of intellectual curiosity and determination. College Behind Bars is directed and produced by Lynn Novick; produced by Sarah Botstein; edited by Tricia Reidy ACE; produced by Salimah El-Amin and Mariah Doran;original music by Jongnic Bontemps; cinematography by Buddy Squires ASC and Nadia Hallgren. The Bard Prison Initiative enrolls over 300 incarcerated students in six New York State prisons. LAVENDER AND TRAP I will either boil water or run a bathtub because on Sundays, I love to take a hot bath, with lavender Epsom salts. College Behind Bars, an Emmy-nominated, four-part documentary about the transformative power of education. You have this big smile on your face when you're leaving the auditorium and the mess hall. College Behind Bars is an intimate look at the lives and experiences of a dozen BPI students and their families that confronts and challenges conventional wisdom about the purpose of both education and incarceration. Your education in that space can be interrupted in all types of different ways at any time of day. TATRO: By the way, you know, the recent research shows that for every dollar a state invests in college and prison, it saves $4 to $5 in re-incarceration costs. That degree really means something when they leave this program with their degree from Bard. And with time, as we become scholars, the idea that we should be limited to just vocational training just becomes absurd. My family loves Bard College. YOON: There's this moment where you walk past his door, and all you see is curtains and officers waiting in, like, rows. And one day, we went to a karaoke bar, and a fight erupted, and somebody ended up losing his life. YOON: Two more years after my bachelor's degree in 2017. (SOUNDBITE OF MARCUS ROBERTS' "IT'S MARIA'S DANCE"). They become the support system that we need to rely on. I have two brothers - one older, one younger. This movement took on renewed urgency following Congresss reinstatement of Pell Grant access to incarcerated students in 2020. DAVIES: Sebastian Yoon, tell us what it was like getting started in these classes. And then upon entering prison, I felt the same otherness that I felt while I was in middle and high school. So it has a ripple effect even beyond people applying to just - you know, the facilities where there is higher education have less incidence of violence and disruption and things like that. Ill get up and just sit in silence in my apartment. A QUIET START I allow myself to sleep no later than 7:30, because on a weekday I get up around 5. YOON: I never stopped being a student. What was that time like for you? That was not our experience at all. This is not my identity. What you see at the end is a testament to the power of education, and why it remains such a dangerous and underrated weapon against a racially and economically unjust status quo in this nation., The powerful new miniseries suggests we might find hope in the transformative effect of higher education., [A] nuanced look at education in the prison industrial complex., An important educational call to arms. Lynn Novick's 'College Behind Bars,' four-hour PBS documentary about the Bard Prison Initiative and the impact of educational programs as part of prison reform, is provocative and inspiring. NOVICK: Yeah, pretty much. And, you know, they're like, strip. (Speaking Korean) Thank you. There in school I had my first experience with racism and discrimination because I was one of a handful of Asian students. Are they right about that, Dyjuan? By creating an account, you acknowledge that PBS may share your information with our member stations and our respective service providers, and that you have read and understand the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. NOVICK: Yeah. It radiates and ramifies throughout my entire family structure, you know? TATRO: Sure. The Bard Prison Initiative enrolls over 300 incarcerated students in six New York State prisons. In 1994, the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act made people in prison ineligible for Pell Grants. College Behind Bars is the inspiring, emotional, and deeply human story of men and women struggling to earn college degrees while in prison for serious crimes. COLLEGE BEHIND BARS, a four-part documentary film series, tells the story of a small group of incarcerated men and women struggling to earn college degrees and turn their lives around in one of the most rigorous and effective prison education programs in the United States - the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI). YOON: Yeah. They love the Bard Prison Initiative. Let's get back to the interview FRESH AIR's Dave Davies recorded with Lynn Novick, director of the new PBS documentary "College Behind Bars," and Sebastian Yoon and Dyjuan Tatro, two graduates of the Bard Prison Initiative. I had to show my passion. This clip from Lynn Novicks College Behind Bars highlights the kind of academic work BPI students are doing as we defy expectations of who college is for and where it might lead. - and wait until you get the all clear? Bard Prison Initiative graduate Sebastian Yoon, featured in the new PBS documentary College Behind Bars, shares how BPI changed him and the Eastern Correctional Facility, where he was incarcerated until March. And Max Kenner, who is the founder and executive director of the program, is welcoming the new students. Rodney, Sebastian and Giovannie embark on yearlong senior, The debate union faces Harvard. And school was just really too easy. And I am the most proud father in the world. So I grew up in Flushing, Queens. I know it's not love after lockup but I couldn't really find a relevant sub. When that door closes, you're at Bard College. DAVIES: Tell us a little bit about the work you're doing. Who among us is capable of academic excellence? NOVICK: Yeah. All rights reserved. When I look at the scenes of the classroom in the documentary - it's a four-part documentary, and there are a lot of scenes - these classes are a lot more orderly and focused than I remember any of my college or high school classes being. Your support helps make this possible. It's not our business. Learn more about Pell restoration on our blog. BPI was proud to partner with College and Community Fellowships #TurnOnTheTapNY campaign to restore access to New Yorks state-level need-based student grants, the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) for incarcerated students. You can learn the math skills you need pretty quickly if you're motivated. So I was charged at the age of 16 for manslaughter in the first degree, and I was sentenced to 15 years. More than 2 million Americans are incarcerated today, and many are looking for alternatives to prison and ways to help offenders rebuild their lives. 2026. And, you know, spending time in the classrooms - as Sarah Botstein, the producer, and I did - I kept thinking, I wish I could go back to college and have this experience because it is - the classes are small. In 1993, Mr. Hall, then 17, was involved in a gunfight in Brooklyn, when a bullet fired toward him killed his neighbor instead. I mean, there's - it's in the prison auditorium - right? My father never saw me as a bad person. When incarcerated students from the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI) Debate Union beat a team from Harvard, their victory made headlines around the world. I have watched them leave prison and have to struggle in ways that I have not because I have had the privilege of a college education. As a result, the number of college-in-prison programs in New York fell from over 70 to 4. It's always a seminar style. ). To learn more about the restoration of TAP, read Jessica Neptunes the Director of National Engagement blog post here & Executive Director, Max Kenners, letter to our supporters here. In four years of study they become scholars, shatter stereotypes, reckon with their pasts, and prepare to return to society. LYNN NOVICK: The most significant thing for me was that when Max Kenner asked me if I would teach a course on documentary and history, he said the students would love to have a film class, but you have to promise, if you're going to do it, this has to be extremely rigorous. While I was sentenced to 15 years several years into his both of you to me. Because I was sentenced to 15 years, there were like, strip implemented a on... Support system that we should be limited to just vocational training just absurd... 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