New program will help inmates earn high school diplomas with tablets

TALLAHASSEE, Florida — A leading supplier of digital devices to U.S. prisons is launching a new program to help inmates earn a high school diploma using the company’s tablets.

Advocates say the expansion of virtual education holds promise, especially since many inmates lack skills. basic literacy skillsBut some advocates have said there are limits to what that means. prison technology can accomplish.

ViaPath, which sells secure devices and telecommunications services for use in the criminal justice system, has announced that inmates across the country will soon be able to enroll in virtual classes through a partnership with Promising People, an educational technology company, and American High School, a private online school in South Florida that will award the diplomas.

The asynchronous lessons are available for free on ViaPath tablets. According to the company, 700,000 of the tablets are already in use in nearly 2,000 prisons and jails.

“If you get a high school diploma, you get a high school education with some job skills and knowledge. The chances of you coming back into our prisons are very slim,” said Tony Lowden, Chief Social Impact Officer for ViaPath. “We believe there is an opportunity to help men and women come home differently.”

A meta-analysis by the RAND Corporation found that education significantly reduces recidivism, suggesting that every dollar invested in prison education could save $4-5 on the cost of re-incarceration.

Lowden said the high school diploma program will provide a more comprehensive education than existing GED courses and will offer inmates greater earning potential once they are released. The company said it will also offer vocational and technical education via virtual reality headsets.

ViaPath claims its tablets are free to inmates and that it doesn’t charge for educational programming. Yet prison telecommunications is a lucrative industry, with state and local governments signing multimillion-dollar contracts for phone service, tablets and apps that inmates can use to call loved ones, stream music or read e-books — for a fee. Costs because those services can quickly add up for prisoners who earn only 25 cents an hour, if that, the Prison Policy Initiative.

After serving 11 years in prison in Florida, Ryan Moser knows the benefits of prison tablets – and the downsides, too.

“There are a lot of advantages to the tablet. You can study whenever you want,” said Moser, who is now a freelance journalist and communications consultant.

But using a tablet behind bars isn’t the same as scrolling on an iPad at home, Moser said. The devices are generally charged or updated at a central kiosk in the prison, and access can be inconsistent and unpredictable — and ultimately up to correctional officials.

“I remember it took four days to charge my tablet,” Moser said. “If you had a discipline problem or you were someone who gave them attitude, they might keep (your tablet) for a week, two weeks.”

Keri Watson directs the Florida Prison Education Project at the University of Central Florida, which offers college-level courses in prisons. She has questions about delivering virtual education behind bars, but said she’s encouraged by efforts to improve access.

“The more programs in as many modalities as possible, the better,” Watson said.

Digital infrastructure has helped prisons continue offering programming at times when volunteers cannot enter, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic or during a safety lockdown.

During the pandemic, Watson said her staff had to switch their in-person classes to virtual learning via tablets provided by another company. She said it was a difficult transition.

“The technology wasn’t there yet,” she said. “So until it’s more like the technology that can be offered to non-prison students, I’m not sure it’s feasible.”

The devices’ features are limited by design for security purposes. Lowden, the ViaPath official, told The Associated Press that the company’s tablets will not include note-taking apps because of security risks such as covert communications between inmates.

Still, advocates say prisoners desperately need more access to education to prepare them for release. According to the most recent annual report In the Florida state prison system, 1,339 inmates earned a GED diploma in 2022. That’s less than 2% of the state’s total prison population of more than 80,000.

“While participation in educational programs remains optional, overall inmate participation in these programs continues to increase,” the Florida Department of Corrections said in a statement to the AP. “The Department has focused its resources on programming focused on functional literacy and vocational training.”

During his years as a GED instructor at a state prison near the Everglades in Florida, Moser saw the impact basic education could have on his fellow inmates.

“I remember the looks on the boys’ faces,” Moser said. “For some of these boys, it was one of the proudest moments of their lives to go into education and achieve something.”

Moser said the virtual high school diploma program could help meet inmates’ basic needs and bypass the waitlists for in-person classes. But just like outside, he said, there’s “no substitute” for incarcerated students being able to sit in a real classroom and learn from a qualified teacher.

___ Kate Payne is a staff member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-reported issues.