ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the question: How does higher education in prison affect women’s incarceration and reentry? Using the narratives of women who have taken college courses inside prison, I examine how these women used education to reconcile the traumas in their life that contributed to their incarceration. My findings reveal that it is not until they get to prison and have the opportunity to take college courses that the women experience the power of learning, and understand how liberating education can be and why it is crucial to their recovery and reentry. However, despite the successes the women in this study have had after prison, they still faced difficulties reentering. Thus, while providing incarcerated women with a higher education is important and necessary to help with a successful reentry, it is not the sole answer.
