Prison and education

Radical Teacher, Winter, 2004

Community Prep, New York City's first public high school for students who have been recently released from juvenile prisons and jails, had 27 students, about a third of the school roster, in attendance at the final assembly. These students had returned to their neighborhoods after serving time for offenses ranging from assault to drug possession, but the city's other schools no longer wanted them. To give a second chance, Community Prep opened two years ago as a transitional school offering preparation for regular high schools or G.E.D. programs (The New York Times, July 25, 2004).

Launched in 2003, Five Keys Charter School in San Francisco is the first, and only, charter school inside a prison. The school's name is meant to remind students of the importance of education, employment, family, community, and recovery. At Five Keys, men and women 18 and up take classes toward a high school diploma in two San Francisco County jails and one post-release site (In These Times, August 30, 2004).