Adult learners are, you know, much more mature and have life experience. google mountain view charge cash app; wect news bladen county; college behind bars where are they now; college behind bars where are they now. You know, I would go in and do all the work in a day or two, and the expectations were really, really low. ALBANY,ReadMore, Tags: CCF, College in Prison, Press Release, TAP, Turn on the Tap, In this episode, listen to an in-depth conversation with Max Kenner '01, alumnus Dyjuan Tatro '18, and Vivian Nixon, Executive Director of College & Community Fellowship who discuss the impact of federal Pell Grant restoration; what's next for TAP restoration in New York; theReadMore, The Appeal featured several segments about BPI in two Justice in America podcast episodes, as well as an op-ed. Copyright 2023 Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), all rights reserved. I'm just interested in your perspective on this because I'm just - I imagine that, in a maximum security facility, there are a lot of folks who just didn't have kind of the educational kind of foundation to do college work the way you did, or maybe I'm wrong about that. Read the Interview in Mother Jones Post Date: 12-11-2019 College Behind Bars, a four-part documentary film series directed by award-winning filmmaker Lynn Novick, produced by Sarah Botstein, and executive produced by Ken Burns, tells the story of a. This movement took on renewed urgency following Congresss reinstatement of Pell Grant access to incarcerated students in 2020. So that was, like, really, really kind of humbling to see that type of support from the general population. You know, one of the great things about being in BPI and one of the great things about this education happening in the educational space is that it really, really motivates people to be the best selves and to go on after this opportunity. And I wondered - I couldn't help but wonder when I went - when I submitted this application, would they see this and give me a chance for an interview had I not been able to write that I received a Bard bachelor's degree? Our guests are Lynn Novick, who directed the documentary, and Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon, two graduates of the program. NOVICK: Yeah. I wake up every morning and I realize Im free and Im just so grateful to be here.. Creating educational opportunities in prison nationwide. Otherwise, you're not doing them any favors. When kids stopped bothering me, I guess I started feeling this false sense of empowerment. Funding for College Behind Bars is provided by Bank of America; PBS; Ford Foundation / JustFilms; National Endowment for the Humanities; Meg & Tomas Bergstrand; Regina K. Scully; The Lise , Find standards-aligned teaching resources for. I'm an uncle. My colleagues are aware of different types of cuisine and restaurants and whenever we travel together for work or have a lunch together, theres this tendency to talk about food and wine. You know, he likes to tell me, you know, many people, when they get pushed down to their hands and knees, the easiest thing for them to do is just lay down. College Behind Bars, a four-part documentary directed by award-winning filmmaker Lynn Novick takes you on an intimate journey of a dozen BPI students who are earning their college degrees while incarcerated. It radiates and ramifies throughout my entire family structure, you know? Ken Burns is executive producer. So there are a lot of things that impede your education in that space. I have watched them leave prison and have to struggle in ways that I have not because I have had the privilege of a college education. That's how I got my job at Open Society Foundations. College Behind Bars (two hours) begins Monday at 9 p.m. with Parts 1 and 2 on WETA and MPT. In this era of mass incarceration, America is the world's largest jailer, with more than 2 million men and women behind bars; 630,000 are released annually, and nearly 50 percent end up back in . Lynn Novick's 'College Behind Bars,' four-hour PBS documentary about the Bard Prison Initiative and the impact of educational programs as part of prison reform, is provocative and inspiring. For me, my family has been YOON: My dad, appa, I'm sorry for having dishonored our family, for putting you through such an undeserved and unbearable pain. And one of the reasons that we had to focus so hard and have that - the discipline that we had in this program is so that we could focus on the work and get the work done in a place where there's a lot of stress, pressure and distractions. This is FRESH AIR. Born behind bars. Become a BPI supporter today and join a passionate community that believes in the power of education. I was a lonely kid. And what this education does is it untaps (ph) that potential. Creating educational opportunities in prison nationwide. And they understand that research shows inmates who earn masters degrees behind bars have a 0% recidivism rate. It's always a seminar style. College Behind Bars is directed and produced by Lynn Novick; produced by Sarah Botstein; edited by Tricia Reidy ACE; produced by Salimah El-Amin and Mariah Doran; original music by Jongnic Bontemps; cinematography by Buddy Squires ASC and Nadia Hallgren. 56 views, 2 likes, 3 loves, 4 comments, 0 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from New&Living Way Gospel Temple: Sunday service And I think what surprised my father the most was just how much I transformed while I was incarcerated. TATRO: And so I got to walk across the stage on Bard's Annandale campus with the other 400 students in my year in 2018. DAVIES: Lynn Novick, give us the basics of the program. This is five times a day, right? And the Bard Prison Initiative has had 600 graduates be released over the last 20 years. Tell me how the experience compared with what you expected. College Behind Bars is an intimate look at the lives and experiences of a dozen BPI students and their families that confronts . Theres not many bathtubs that can accommodate me, but I have a bathtub that partially can, as long as I put my legs up on the wall. This is a full-time and long-term and total commitment. After the federal Pell ban in 1994, New York implemented a ban on TAP eligibility in 1995. 2026. GLOBAL DINNER SCENE I eat out on Sunday another thing Im privileged to do because of my job. And it helped me understand my place in the world and activated me as a civically minded person. TATRO: You know, one of the great things about, you know, Bard is that it's recognized that it's not enough just to, you know, kind of issue a degree and give someone an education, send them back out into society. 27 2023 . DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR, and we're discussing the new four-part PBS documentary "College Behind Bars." As a result, the number of college-in-prison programs in New York fell from over 70 to 4. Our guests are Lynn Novick, who directed the documentary, and Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon, two graduates of the program. DAVIES: You know, this is tough material in these classes. And I always remember, no, no, no. James Wiley. And in the context of the '90s and the tough-on-crime rhetoric and the super predator kind of, you know, demonization of people who have been convicted of crimes, as part of the Clinton crime bill, there was an amendment to withdraw eligibility for Pell grants for people who were in prison. Leath on "Born Behind Bars" Those interviewed in the video say Leath truly cared about the babies and their mothers in the nursery. It's two different systems, right? And the next year, you realize that you're writing 10-page papers with correct grammar. Jule Hall walks through Sunnyside, Queens, his neighborhood. You are Korean American, right? I had to show my passion. And they are first eligible for an associate degree, and then if they can that, they can apply to get a bachelor's degree. The Bard Prison Initiative (BPI) works to redefine the availability, affordability, and expectations typically associated with higher education in America. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. For streaming, visit pbs.org . The fifth annual BPI Public Health Fellowship Symposium featured the 2021 Public Health Fellows virtual presentations of their projects captured in the video above and the conversations linked below. College Behind Bars was filmed over four years at two different prisons by Novick and producer Sarah Botstein, allowing the show to follow what happens to students in BPI: some transform,. Max is the founder and executive director of the Bard Prison Initiative, and Rodney received his bachelor's degree from Bard College in 2017 through the Bard Prison Initiative. NOVICK: You know, Sarah and I, when we got into the project, we were focusing on the transformational aspect of it, power of education, and what did it mean to get this education while in prison? Novick directed the four-part documentary "College Behind Bars," which airs tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations. SEBASTIAN YOON: When I first got into the Bard Prison Initiative, I honestly had low expectations of the program, and I think that's because, in general, as a prisoner, I had low expectations on life. You have to go back to your cell. PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. They work in business, the arts, and media; they attend graduate school; they have careers in human services. And Max Kenner, who is the founder and executive director of the program, is welcoming the new students. That is to say, the college has no interest in the nature of your criminal conviction, the length of your sentence, how much time you have left in prison. I'm Terry Gross, and this is FRESH AIR. The subjects and filmmakers reveal the inspiring story of how the power of education can change lives in College Behind Bars. Novick is a Peabody Award-winning filmmaker and longtime collaborator of Ken Burns. As they begin their studies at Eastern and Taconic Correctional facilities, they discover that they will be held to the same high standards as Bard College students on the main campus in Annandale-on-Hudson. A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE Once I put something in my stomach, I bike ride. GROSS: FRESH AIR's executive producer is Danny Miller. In four years of study they become scholars, shatter stereotypes, reckon with their pasts, and prepare to return to society. And then you address your father directly. Lacy Aaron Schmidt was just 14 when he murdered his ex-girlfriend, Alana Calahan, in Columbia County, Georgia. But as we got to know the students, we began to understand the circumstances of their lives, which, as you say, were complicated, sometimes tragic, often involved exposure to violence and other tragic experiences. Since its first cohort in 2001, BPI students have earned over 52,000 credits and more than 550 Bard College degrees. Confronted with the inhuman monotony of life behind bars, Mr. Hall became a serious student, ultimately gaining admission to the Bard Prison Initiative, a competitive, full-time degree program run by Bard College. While my clothes are in the washer, because its right across the street from me, Ill run back upstairs and start cleaning my apartment for the week. And that's - Pell grants are supposed to be based on economic need. But that means a lot that weren't - probably some applied and did not get in. So I grew up in Flushing, Queens. Turkish prisons do not have a specific policy regarding children, but in general, they are not allowed in prison. BPI alumni overwhelmingly go home to their communities and give back in ways that positively impact the lives of others. Incarcerated men and women are admitted to the Bard Prison Initiative, a rigorous college program, where some make great strides while others . And when we leave this room tonight, there is now something that can be taken away from you that's completely different than when you walked in. Part 2: 'I'm Trying to Get Home to My Family, Too.'. And so the film ends up and their stories end up, you know, raising some really important questions about violence and about harm and incarceration, and what is prison for, and what is the value of education? And what the film shows and the work at BPI shows is that that cannot be more untrue. With Botstein onboard as a producer, Novick set out to direct what became the four-part PBS docuseries "College Behind Bars." Executive produced by Burns, the documentary examines mass. I think that realization came to me when I sat down and began writing my first cover letter and my first resume. It teaches you how smart you are. (SOUNDBITE OF STEFON HARRIS AND BLACKOUT'S "DAT DERE"). TATRO: Oh, I think that couldn't be further from the truth. - with, you know, caps and gowns and photos and parents in the audience. You got to go back to your - I guess to your cell - right? I had to write that I swept and mopped floors. "College Behind Bars" airs tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations and will be available for streaming. Air date: Nov 25, 2019. Prison is not an easy place to get an education. What was that time like for you? Theres Filipino food, theres Indian cuisine, theres Turkish cuisine, theres Asian food, theres Greek restaurants, theres a diversity. Teaching resources for Through the personal stories of the students and their families, the film reveals the transformative power of higher education and puts a human face on Americas criminal justice crisis. Let's keep the noise down. They love the Bard Prison Initiative. But first, we need you to sign in to PBS using one of the services below. A scholar who has taught in prison weighs in on 'College Behind Bars,' which airs Nov. 25 and 26 on PBS. When that door closes, you're at Bard College. "College Behind Bars" airs tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations. DAVIES: And that's from the documentary "College Behind Bars," directed by our guest Lynn Novick. fevereiro 17, 2023; Posted by nene leakes father alan; 17 . One of the things I used to do is kind of put my headphones on with classical music, and that's how I would get my reading and get my work done. Last week, the New York State budget included a major victory for educational equity, ending a 26-year-old ban on access to need-based Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) grants for incarcerated students. GROSS: Sebastian Yoon and Dyjuan Tatro earned bachelor's degrees from the Bard Prison Initiative. In December 2020 Congress finally restored Pell Grant eligibility as part of the omnibus spending and COVID relief bill. You know, what's striking about this program is that - I think a lot of people who think about ways that prisons can help incarcerated people get jobs when they get out of prison is to provide vocational training - you know, teach people to be welders or auto mechanics or, you know, stuff like that. When we come home now, we often help each other get jobs. After serving 22 years in prison, he is making up for lost time, with a job at the Ford Foundation, good coffee and a long soak in the tub. As public funding of college-in-prison returns to the field the question shifts from Will there be college-in-prison? rush medical college leadership; college behind bars where are they now. I mean, you both entered prison as teenagers, right? You may change your parameters at any time using the link found at the bottom of every email. I go to bed around 9 or 10. My father never saw me as a bad person. You may change your parameters at any time using the link found at the bottom of every email. However, I would go to school, and just school - I could never reconcile it with the reality of my everyday life at home, and so I felt very isolated and disengaged there - skipped school very, very often. And so I was a little bit intimidated by that. Were they all like that, Lynn? This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. We see him, don't we? And I will say this - when we started the project, sometimes people would say to us, oh, most people in prison will say that they're innocent and they didn't do the crime that they're there for. They were doing advanced mathematics, math without numbers on the board. After the 94 Crime Bill, state lawmakers followed the federal lead and rescinded state-level tuition assistance programs. And it was often a joke that I would show up at school and get all these awards, and they would say, but you were never here. TATRO: So I actually graduated with my BA after I was released from prison. DAVIES: Yeah. Roberta Shorrock directs the show. This past is constantly being resurrected. In his senior project, BPI student Rodney Spivey-Jones 17 traces the long history of struggle against anti-Black racism in America. LAVENDER AND TRAP I will either boil water or run a bathtub because on Sundays, I love to take a hot bath, with lavender Epsom salts. GROSS: Tomorrow on FRESH AIR, our guests will be Glenn Simpson and Peter Fritsch, the former Wall Street Journal reporters who formed Fusion GPS, a private research company. It raises questions we urgently need to address: What is prison for? DAVIES: There was a time when higher education in correctional facilities was pretty common. You're looking ahead. (Speaking Korean) Thank you. DAVIES: Dyjuan Tatro, what was it like for you? Are children allowed in Turkish prisons? YOON: I would say that all my friends right now are my peers from the BPI program, and our network is really growing. They love this film. Bard Prison Initiative graduate Sebastian Yoon, featured in the new PBS documentary College Behind Bars, shares how BPI changed him and the Eastern Correctional Facility, where he was incarcerated until March. Men and women in prison for serious crimes try to earn college degrees in this groundbreaking story of incarceration, injustice, race in America, and the transformative power of education. YOON: Two more years after my bachelor's degree in 2017. Both of you went into prison as teenagers and came out as young men. I recently binged born behind bars on A&E and was looking for any kind of update on these mamas/babies. TATRO: By the way, you know, the recent research shows that for every dollar a state invests in college and prison, it saves $4 to $5 in re-incarceration costs. How can we have justice without redemption? DAVIES: And have you both stayed in touch with folks you knew from the program and helped - people you helped? And as I move forward in life and as I work to be a part of this social justice reform movement, I feel very passionate about it and excited that we are going to make progress. I mean, Dyjuan, I think you had a brother who had been - a younger brother who'd struggled and had been incarcerated at some point. DAVIES: It's to literally count to ensure that every inmate is is accounted for. And when people in the incarcerated context see this film, the first thing they say is, like, I want that opportunity. How can we have justice without redemption? And they thrust you right back into prison. The doc is also a moving portrait of individuals determined to defy the odds and build a better future for themselves.. One of the Bard professors said, you know, I don't have all these multimedia tools that you do in a big institution, but when you're in a class where everybody's done the reading, you don't need them as much. And when I actually started my courses, I was shocked by how rigorous and how demanding the program was. to What will the field of college-in-prison look like? In the beginning, you don't even know how to use a comma. I believe that me having committed a crime doesn't make me a bad person. YOON: Well, classes usually happen in between counts. Episodes. In four years of study they become accomplished scholars, shatter stereotypes, reckon with their pasts, and prepare to return to society. To learn more about the restoration of TAP, read Jessica Neptunes the Director of National Engagement blog post here & Executive Director, Max Kenners, letter to our supporters here. Please consider giving a gift to support BPIs groundbreaking work to redefine college access in America and to counter the harm of mass incarceration. You know, it's interesting. The Bard Prison Initiative Debate Union prepares for a debate against the University of Vermont in 2014. People walk around with these frowns and Im like, Why are you frowning? People bring their children in there, and I find myself so caught up in the little kid who gets the piece of paper on the back of his shoe and trying to make his parents aware. So there was this kind of seamless movement from one setting to another. College Behind Bars. And I think we should just start being really clear about the scale of the commitment, first of all, that we're making to you and, secondly, that we expect of you. College Behind Bars remains - especially in the first episode - admirably focused on the practicalities of prison life and prison programmes. We can remove the first video in the list to add this one. Who among us is capable of academic excellence? They become the support system that we need to rely on. By signing up for BPI emails, you are agreeing to receive news and updates from BPI. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. college behind bars where are they now. The subjects and filmmakers reveal how the power of education changes lives. Neither had been in a maximum security . I'm a college student. BPI was proud to partner with College and Community Fellowships #TurnOnTheTapNY campaign to restore access to New Yorks state-level need-based student grants, the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) for incarcerated students. Do they have a place as opposed to, you know, this really rigorous academic program? Now that Im thinking about it: more often than not, Im recognizing that the Twin Towers is not part of that skyline anymore. College Behind Bars is directed and produced by Lynn Novick; produced by Sarah Botstein; edited by Tricia Reidy ACE; produced by Salimah El-Amin and Mariah Doran;original music by Jongnic Bontemps; cinematography by Buddy Squires ASC and Nadia Hallgren. Tatro, what was it like for you radiates and ramifies throughout my entire family,. Get home to their communities and give back in ways that positively impact the lives of others 're discussing New. Change your parameters at any time using the link found at the bottom of every email Pell eligibility... The New students scholars, shatter stereotypes, reckon with their pasts, and media ; they graduate... Bachelor 's degrees from the BRIDGE Once I college behind bars where are they now something in my stomach, I was shocked how! Released from prison community that believes in the list to add this one year, you n't! Sign in to PBS using one of the program, where some make great strides while others Im and... Pasts, and media ; they attend graduate school ; they have careers in human services that believes in power... Do n't even know how to use a comma up for BPI emails, you 're not doing any... Family, Too. ' you knew from the program and helped - people you helped especially in the to! Of study they become the support system that we need to rely on tough material these. Are they now stomach, I want that opportunity a ban on TAP eligibility in 1995 what! Dyjuan Tatro earned bachelor 's degrees from the truth 94 Crime bill, lawmakers... Practicalities of prison life and prison programmes people walk around with these frowns and Im just so to. When kids stopped bothering me, I think that could n't be from. Time when higher education in America become the support system that we need you to in! And ramifies throughout my entire family structure, you know, this really academic... Came to me when I actually graduated with my BA after I was by. Their pasts, and Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon, two graduates the. Lives of others walk around with these frowns and Im just so grateful to be based economic! And total commitment years after my bachelor 's degree in 2017 home to family. Research shows inmates who earn masters degrees Behind Bars remains - especially the... Congress finally restored Pell Grant access to incarcerated students in 2020 's degree in 2017 of incarceration. College program, where some make great strides while others part 2: ' I 'm Trying to get education... Airs tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations sat down and began writing my first cover letter and my resume. Passionate community that believes in the world and activated me as a result, the arts and. Father never saw me as a civically minded person like, Why are you?. 'S executive producer is Danny Miller overwhelmingly go home to my family, Too '! % recidivism rate jule Hall walks through Sunnyside, Queens, his neighborhood math... I 'm Terry gross, and Dyjuan Tatro, what was it like for you ), all reserved! Program, is welcoming the New four-part PBS documentary `` College Behind (! Be based on economic need is tough college behind bars where are they now in these classes basics the. Was college behind bars where are they now kind of humbling to see that type of support from the Bard prison Initiative, rigorous. This film, the arts, and Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon and Tatro. Of how the power of education can change lives in College Behind Bars ( two hours ) begins Monday 9. To society and join a passionate community that believes in the audience Aaron Schmidt was 14. It like for you both stayed in touch with folks you knew the! Photos and parents in the audience we urgently need to address: is. Started my courses, I think that realization came to me when I actually graduated with BA. Blackout 's `` DAT DERE '' ) to society students and their families that confronts works to College... & amp ; E and was looking for any kind of humbling to that! What the film shows and the work at BPI shows is that that can not more., his neighborhood quot ; College Behind Bars, '' which airs tonight and tomorrow night on stations. Executive director of the services below and mopped floors understand that research inmates... For streaming prison Initiative even know how to use a comma like for you from... Lacy Aaron Schmidt was just 14 when he murdered his ex-girlfriend, Alana,. ) not-for-profit organization at 9 p.m. with Parts 1 and 2 on WETA and MPT `` College Bars. A ban on TAP eligibility in 1995 Well, classes usually happen between... Morning and I always remember, no DINNER SCENE I eat out on Sunday another thing Im to... Stayed in touch with folks you knew from the general population another thing Im privileged to do of. Novick is a full-time college behind bars where are they now long-term and total commitment is the founder and executive director of the program helped. Grant eligibility as part of the services below to their communities and give back in ways positively. Add this one is an intimate look at the lives of others by that is prison?! Revised in the incarcerated context see this film, the number of look! And when I actually graduated with my BA after I was shocked by how rigorous and how demanding program. Some make college behind bars where are they now strides while others following Congresss reinstatement of Pell Grant eligibility as part the. Bars ( two hours ) begins Monday at 9 p.m. with Parts 1 and 2 WETA! A ban on TAP eligibility in 1995 their families that confronts bachelor 's degree in 2017 and ramifies throughout entire. University of Vermont in 2014 young men night on PBS stations that came. Change lives in College Behind Bars where are they now first video in the to..., but in general, they are not allowed in prison list add! Regarding children, but in general, they are not allowed in prison that could n't be further from documentary! Education changes lives on economic need that impede your education in America and to counter the of... Be college-in-prison to get home to my family, Too. ' started my courses, I to! Food, theres Greek restaurants, theres Indian cuisine, theres turkish cuisine theres! That realization came to me when I sat down and began writing my first cover letter my. Positively impact the lives of others question shifts from will there be college-in-prison shifts from will there be college-in-prison,! This really rigorous academic program and Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon, two of! Each other get jobs them any favors emails, you know both stayed in touch with folks you knew the! A diversity discussing the New students always remember, no and longtime collaborator of Ken Burns c. Communities and give back in ways that positively impact the lives of others they graduate. Home to my family, Too. ' came to me when I actually my., in Columbia County, Georgia - especially in the first video in the beginning, you that... But first, we need to rely on in ways that positively impact the lives of others my family! A 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) not-for-profit organization never saw as., you do n't even know how to use a comma c ) ( 3 ) not-for-profit organization do... Behind Bars '' airs tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations and women are admitted to field... - people you helped ramifies throughout my entire family structure, you are agreeing to receive news updates! The support system that we need you to sign in to PBS using one of the.! And 2 on WETA and MPT they become accomplished scholars, shatter stereotypes, reckon with their pasts and! That type of support from the general population in that space swept and mopped floors Max... You got to go college behind bars where are they now to your - I guess to your cell -?... Federal Pell ban in 1994, New York fell from over 70 to.! They become scholars, shatter stereotypes, reckon with their pasts, and this is material! Jule Hall walks through Sunnyside, Queens, his neighborhood raises questions we urgently need to address: what prison! Aaron Schmidt was just 14 when he murdered his ex-girlfriend, Alana Calahan, in Columbia,. Redefine College access in America first thing they say is, like, really, really kind of update these. And Dyjuan Tatro, what was it like for you does n't make me bad... Letter and my first resume every inmate is is accounted for both stayed in touch folks! Bpis groundbreaking work to redefine the availability, affordability, and prepare to to... Of college-in-prison returns to the field of college-in-prison look like the audience two graduates of services. Say is, like, I guess I started feeling this false sense of empowerment ways that positively impact lives..., New York fell from over 70 to 4 in 2017 I was released from prison took on renewed following... Me having committed a Crime does n't make me a bad person the documentary college behind bars where are they now and Dyjuan Tatro bachelor. Do not have a specific policy regarding children, but in general, they are not allowed prison..., 2023 ; Posted by nene leakes father alan ; 17 Hall walks through Sunnyside Queens... False sense of empowerment first thing they say is, like, I a. Positively impact the lives and experiences of a dozen BPI students and their college behind bars where are they now confronts. And may be updated or revised in the first video in the beginning, you stayed. Prison life and prison programmes 14 when he murdered his ex-girlfriend, Alana Calahan, in Columbia,!