[ti:Inmates Find Hope in College Classes at San Quentin Prison] [ar:Bob Doughty] [al:Education Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Special English [00:02.49]Education Report. [00:04.53]Last week we told you [00:06.77]about a prison training program [00:08.66]in the American Northwest. [00:10.95]It teaches women in prison [00:12.94]to start their own businesses [00:15.03]after their release. [00:16.92]Today we tell you about [00:19.31]one of the few prisons in America [00:21.75]that offer college-level classes: [00:24.68]San Quentin State Prison [00:27.42]in California. [00:28.91]Jody Lewen volunteered to teach [00:38.27]in the college program [00:39.71]at San Quentin [00:41.15]in nineteen ninety-nine. [00:43.19]She was a graduate student. [00:45.53]The program had a small group [00:48.62]of volunteers and no money. [00:50.76]But a year later the director resigned. [00:53.64]Ms. Lewen agreed to run the program [00:56.93]until a permanent director [00:59.22]could be found. [01:00.76]JODY LEWEN: "But once I started [01:01.56]doing the work and got [01:02.75]more deeply involved, [01:04.55]I also began to see [01:07.09]the potential the program had. [01:08.93]And I started to think more [01:10.63]and more about what this program [01:12.02]could become. [01:12.86]And the people it can serve [01:15.39]and the values and the ideals [01:16.58]that could also address. [01:18.57]The Prison University Project [01:20.86]has expanded under [01:22.10]Ms. Lewen's leadership. [01:23.55]The goal is to prepare men to lead [01:26.88]thoughtful and productive lives [01:29.38]inside and outside of prison. [01:32.28]Twenty courses [01:34.27]are offered each semester. [01:36.01]Classes this spring included English, [01:39.64]math, United States history, [01:42.38]and Russian and Soviet history. [01:45.24]Other courses included [01:47.33]Asian-American theater, Spanish, [01:50.65]biology, sociology, philosophy [01:54.54]and criminal justice. [01:56.08]Three hundred inmates [01:58.21]take classes every semester. [02:00.02]They earn credits toward [02:02.60]an associate of arts degree [02:04.31]in liberal arts from Patten University [02:07.14]in Oakland, California. [02:09.54]Ms. Lewen says getting teachers [02:12.18]to volunteer is not difficult. [02:15.02]But some are nervous about [02:17.26]their first trip to San Quentin. [02:19.54]JODY LEWEN: "You know, [02:20.44]all the stereotypes people [02:21.04]have in their minds about people [02:22.28]who are incarcerated, and they assume [02:23.53]they're a lot of troublemakers [02:24.92]and people are goofing off [02:26.86]and they do not want to do their work. [02:28.25]That stereotype has nothing [02:29.15]to do with reality." [02:30.25]She has recruited more than [02:32.15]one hundred fifty volunteers, [02:34.19]including graduate students [02:36.53]from colleges and universities [02:38.81]in the area. [02:40.11]Charles Spence hopes to earn parole [02:42.90]from prison one day. [02:44.19]He needs a few more courses [02:46.28]to receive his associate's degree, [02:48.72]and he wants to earn [02:50.06]a master's degree in psychology. [02:52.60]CHARLES SPENCE: "This experience [02:53.69]really has changed my life. [02:54.74]It has given me a lot of tools [02:56.98]on how to express myself. [02:58.12]This program is really rare [02:59.91]in the prison setting, [03:01.41]so we are really lucky [03:02.85]to have an opportunity [03:03.65]to get an education, [03:05.69]especially with the way the economy [03:07.53]is out there now. [03:08.53]And odds are stacked against us [03:10.13]in being convicted felons. [03:12.27]This actually gives us a lot of hope, [03:14.75]and hopefully will help us succeed [03:16.99]when we walk out the door." [03:18.39]More than one hundred prisoners [03:20.18]have received an associate's degree. [03:21.82]Many more have continued [03:24.46]their college studies after their release. [03:26.90]The project receives no state [03:30.28]or federal money. [03:31.68]It operates with donations [03:34.11]from people and foundations. [03:36.40]Jody Lewen wants to make [03:39.04]a free college education available [03:41.33]to more of the five thousand [03:44.02]five hundred inmates at San Quentin. [03:46.85]There is a long waiting list [03:49.34]of prisoners who want to take classes. [03:51.53]And that's the VOA Special English [03:55.81]Education Report. [03:57.45]I'm Bob Doughty.