Blog

In the third installment of our series on issues of disability, accessibility, and accommodations in postsecondary education in prison programs, we spoke with Ben Wright on his personal experience with disability and higher education in prison and the many challenges people with disabilities face inside. This follows our interview with Dr. Jenifer K. Montag, Director of Disability Services, at Marion Technical College, which highlights the issues that service providers face. Last April,…

This is the second post in our series spotlighting the complex and challenging situation regarding disabilities, accessibility, and accommodations in postsecondary education in prison programs. Read the first entry and announcement of the series. We recently spoke with Dr. Jenifer K. Montag, director of disability services at Marion Technical College, about her work as a researcher-practitioner, the challenges of providing disability services to postsecondary students in prison, and what needs to change for equitable access to education inside. To…

Earlier this month, the FAFSA Simplification Act restored federal Pell grant funding for students who are incarcerated in US prisons. This has driven excitement about higher education in prisons, with pieces celebrating the revised policy in Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of Higher Education. While this is unequivocally good news, it is important to understand that full Pell reinstatement is propelling, and arriving amidst, rapid change in higher education in prisons,…