Correctional Education FactsThe Correctional Population Numbers
During the past decade, the total correctional population increased 49%. There were 2.1 million more men and women under correctional supervision in 2000 than in 1990. The rate of incarceration at the end of 2000 was 478 sentenced inmates per 100,000 U.S. residents, up from 292 in 1990. About 1 in every 109 men and 1 in every 1,695 women were sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state or federal authorities. At the end of 2000, 91,612 women were in state or federal prisons, representing 6.6% of all prison inmates. Nationwide, 22% of adult probationers in 2000 were women, up from 18% in 1990, and 12% of parolees, up from 8% in 1990. Since 1990, the number of male prisoners has grown 77%, reaching 1,290,280 in 2000; the number of female prisoners has increased 108%. Education
Parents The number of children with a mother in prison nearly doubled (up 98%) from 1991 to 1999, while the number of children with a father in prison grew by 58% during this period. In 1999, 22% of all minor children with a parent in custody were under 5 years old. The majority (58%) of all minor children reported by state and federal inmates were less than 10 years old, and the average age of these children was 8 years old. Race/ethnicity Nationwide in 2000, 64% of adult probationers were White adults, compared to 68% in 1990; 34% were Black adults, compared to 31% in 1990; and 16% were Hispanic adults, compared to 18% in 1990. Nationwide in 2000, 55% of adult parolees were White adults, compared to 52% in 1990; 44% were Black adults, compared to 47% in 1990; and 21% were Hispanic adults, compared to 18% in 1990. Among the more than 1.3 million sentenced inmates at the end of 2000, 9.7% of Black males aged 25 to 29 were in prison, compared to 2.9% of Hispanic males and 1.1% of White males in the same age group. In 1997, 33.3% of state prison inmates were White, non-Hispanic; 46.5% were Black, non-Hispanic; 17.0% were Hispanic; and 3.2% were from other racial/ethnic groups. Age
Most prisoners do not participate in prison education programs, and the rate of participation has dropped over the last decade. About one-third of soon-to-be-released inmates reported that they participated in vocational programs (27%) or educational programs (35%) in 1997, down from 31% and 43%, respectively, in 1991. In 1999, jail jurisdictions, which often include more than one jail facility, offered the following types of programs:
In 1995, 5.2% of probationers had participated in a basic education/GED program since entering their probation; 2.5% participated in vocational/job training. In 1995, 15.0% of adult probationers had education/training as a condition of their sentence. Outcomes of Correctional Education The Three State Recidivism Study found that re-arrest, reconviction, and re-incarceration rates were lower for the prison population who had participated in correctional education than for non-participants. The differences were significant in every category. The study found:
Every year for the three years that the study participants were followed, the wages reported to the state labor departments were higher for the education participants compared to non-participants; however, the difference was statistically significant in only one year for that one year, the difference can be attributed to participation. A study of recidivism rates conducted by the Virginia Department of Correctional Education found that:
The study also examined the employment status of 347 persons on parole supervision:
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Last updated: Thursday, 29-May-2008 09:53:27 EDT |