Classes in custody: A look into the Augustana Prison Education Program

That was thanks to a program launched last year that offers a full-time, bachelor's degree in communications to prisoners at the East Moline Correctional Center. The Augustana Prison Education Program, also called APEP, pairs professors and prisoners in a classroom setting.

Besides giving prisoners a chance at a free college degree before their release, APEP aims to reduce recidivism.

"College in prison is the best way to reduce recidivism," APEP director Sharon Varallo said. "It enhances public safety, family stability, the dignity of the individual ... even the chances for children of incarcerated parents to attend college."

Staples, 59, was in the inaugural APEP cohort. Before he finished his degree, the Illinois Innocence Project, a statewide non-profit, helped him obtain an early release after spending 29 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. APEP, he said, gave him inspiration.

"Each of my professors, in their own way, helped me establish the psyche that I could possibly be one of their peers," Staples said. "I've been inspired by that idea, or the notions that I can go to grad school or become a professor one day. I think that was my biggest takeaway, the challenge and ideation that 'I can. Why not me?'"

The benefits of prison education extend beyond public safety and the formerly incarcerated. It also helps the economy, said Varallo, the director.

"For every $1 spent on (education), $4-5 is saved on reduced social services and costs of recidivating," she said. "It's healthy and it's what we should be doing. This is mission-related for Augustana, and the support across the board has been beautiful."

APEP cohorts are typically planned for 18 to 20 students, depending on available prison space and staffing. APEP accepted 24 students this year, 14 more than the pilot.

Prisoners must have a high-school degree or equivalent to apply, though the correctional center offers programs for students to earn their GED. Applicants must also undergo a two-hour written exam and personal interview. APEP faculty do not consider an applicant’s age, criminal conviction or details of sentencing.

All APEP coursework and instruction take place in person with Augustana faculty traveling to the prison to teach, something Staples said was the most beneficial.

"I could tell they wanted to provide the actual college experience for us. That made a huge difference," he said. "It wasn't just prison officials completing an eight-hour shift, which made the interactions highly unusual for me at that point, and I appreciated the difference."

Due to the fact inmates don't have internet access, students must complete their assignments long-hand. To offer more supplemental material for students, APEP is slowly building its own library book by book with state approval.

"I'm trying to first build the library to support the classes being taught," Varallo said. "But getting materials into a prison is difficult and very time consuming, so that's going slowly. We are not yet in a position to take book donations."

Staples said the lack of technology access made learning and coursework more challenging.

"We didn't have those research mechanisms, so it was hard to try and create research papers with second-hand material. We had to use students to actually research materials that we requested," he said. "Being in a position where I didn't always know what to request, made it quite difficult. But that's being addressed as we speak."

APEP is also working with the Illinois Department of Corrections to install a computer lab. It also plans to expand its degree options beyond communications. 

Students earn a regular Augustana transcript upon graduating — featuring no indication that they earned their degree in prison. If a student leaves prison before graduating, APEP works to provide resources, like tuition assistance, for students to finish their degree.

"We are in touch with our recently-released students and hope to build programs to assist in degree completion upon reentry, one step at a time," Varallo said.

The U.S. Department of Education designated APEP as a Second Chance Pell program. The program at the East Moline prison is now also recognized as an accredited additional site of Augustana by the Higher Learning Commission. Initially funded by the Austin E. Knowlton Foundation, APEP now continues through donations from community organizations and private donors.

As for Staples, he plans to return to Augustana to finish college in the spring. This time, as a psychology major.

His favorite course so far: "Bono, Beyonce and Beyond: Music and Activism." Staples hopes to give back to others similarly impacted by the system in the ways APEP and the Illinois Innocence Project did for him.

Upon seeing his grades, Staples said he was "pleasantly surprised." But he knew he’d earned it.

"I put the work in," he said. "So I was proud and felt a sense of achievement."