Women who leave prison can find better success with college education and reentry services. Marion University in Indianapolis partners to do this work and recently received a big financial boost.
An anonymous gift of $5 million will support the Indiana Women's College Partnership. The program started in 2019 at the Indiana Women's Prison and allows women to study and obtain a degree while incarcerated.
Program director Justin McDevitt says it served 15 participants in its first year, and more than 60 women this year. It has also expanded to Rockville Correctional Facility.
"So now about two thirds of women incarcerated in Indiana have access to college in prison,” McDevitt said.
Women can obtain bachelors or associates degrees from Marion University, and there is support to finish degrees after release.
McDevitt said the new funding will allow the program to add more support services for women leaving prison. That could include housing or employment help.
“This will enable us to really dig deep and give them a very soft landing when they get out, full of support," McDevitt said.
The school will set up a new endowed fund to sustain the program. It will be called the St. Margaret of Cortona Fund for Dignity and New Beginnings and aligns with the university’s mission.
"We have seen firsthand what education can mean in the lives of women who are incarcerated, and I am in absolute awe of their intelligence, discipline, and motivation," the anonymous donor said in a statement.
The program may also be expanding to a men’s prison in Indiana.
