Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program
Location
Exhibition Hall, DeVos Center
Description
INTRODUCTION: The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program is a unique classroom experience that opens the lines of communication between the incarcerated population and criminal justice students. The Inside-Out program bridges the gap between the corrections system and those involved in it, as well as education and the students planning on going into the field. This class is a great way for criminal justice students to get hands-on experience working and interacting with inmates, as well as provides both groups with an academic environment to explore current trends in corrections. CHALLENGE: The program presents a challenge, because both the inside and outside students come from very different backgrounds with preconceived notions about one another. EXPERIENCE: The class is held inside Michigan Reformatory and is made up of outside students (Grand Valley graduate and undergraduate level criminal justice students, as well as inside students (Michigan Reformatory inmates). The class pairs the two groups together to discuss current topics within corrections like crime, justice, and punishment. OUTCOME: The goal of the Inside-Out Program is to create a better understanding of the criminal justice system, namely corrections, for the two sets of students through participation in the class. IMPACT: This experience is valuable for students pursuing a career in criminal justice because it allows them to apply what they are learning in the classroom to a real world situation, while at the same time contrasting what they know with the inside students experiences of being incarcerated.
Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program
Exhibition Hall, DeVos Center
INTRODUCTION: The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program is a unique classroom experience that opens the lines of communication between the incarcerated population and criminal justice students. The Inside-Out program bridges the gap between the corrections system and those involved in it, as well as education and the students planning on going into the field. This class is a great way for criminal justice students to get hands-on experience working and interacting with inmates, as well as provides both groups with an academic environment to explore current trends in corrections. CHALLENGE: The program presents a challenge, because both the inside and outside students come from very different backgrounds with preconceived notions about one another. EXPERIENCE: The class is held inside Michigan Reformatory and is made up of outside students (Grand Valley graduate and undergraduate level criminal justice students, as well as inside students (Michigan Reformatory inmates). The class pairs the two groups together to discuss current topics within corrections like crime, justice, and punishment. OUTCOME: The goal of the Inside-Out Program is to create a better understanding of the criminal justice system, namely corrections, for the two sets of students through participation in the class. IMPACT: This experience is valuable for students pursuing a career in criminal justice because it allows them to apply what they are learning in the classroom to a real world situation, while at the same time contrasting what they know with the inside students experiences of being incarcerated.