Enhance In-Prison Education

Research shows that providing education in prison reduces recidivism. The basic facts about New Jersey demonstrate why: the average education level of state prisoners is 6th grade, which limits an already constrained field of job opportunities. In order to increase the likelihood that individuals will lead productive lives following release, the state can take steps to increase in-prison education for all incarcerated individuals who are below basic educational levels. Currently, New Jersey law requires the Department of Corrections to provide academic services only for inmates under the age of 20 who do not have a high school diploma or G.E.D. certificate. Of those incarcerated in 2006, only 3 percent were under 20. Unlike most of the first steps proposed here, education does cost money, but very little in the context of the prison budget and relative to the impact on recidivism. New Jersey can take these steps:

* Pass a Mandatory Education Law: As twenty-two other states have already done, the state should enact a mandatory education law, as an initial measure, requiring inmates who score below the 8th grade level to participate in educational programming for a specified period of time or until they meet the G.E.D. achievement level.

* Implement Incentives Tied to Educational Participation: For those not subject to mandatory education, the state can provide incentives, such as good time, work opportunities, and parole consideration, for educational achievement, with incentives increasing along a sliding scale of participation and achievement.

* Provide Practical Vocational Training: Specific vocational programs tied to demand occupations that do not exclude those with a criminal record, including those that would allow individuals to attain regular licenses or other certification (not simply a certificate of completion of prison program) prior to release will give individuals the practical knowledge and tools for stable jobs on the outside.