October 11, 2023 N.C. prisons embrace digital learning to combat inmate idleness, foster skill development

The blend of technology and education aims at equipping inmates with job-ready skills, amid ongoing 40% staff vacancy rate.

By Avi Bajpai
The Charlotte Observer
Link to full Article https://www.corrections1.com/products/facility-products/inmate-visitation/articles/nc-prisons-embrace-digital-learning-to-combat-inmate-idleness-foster-skill-development-xyr4Gdt8brdfcauN/

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The top official in charge of North Carolina’s prison system said Monday that electronic tablets that have been distributed to prisons across the state have become a valuable and productive resource for inmates.

Speaking at a conference focused on prison reform, N.C. Secretary of Adult Correction Todd Ishee highlighted the rollout and implementation of the tablets, which provide inmates with educational courses to help them learn and develop skills they can use once outside of prison, as a success.

N.C. inmates can use tablets for learning, entertainment and communication. (Photo/AP)

The tablets allow inmates to access thousands of academic, vocational and self-improvement courses as part of an initiative officials launched last year, called Hope University. Since the program’s launch in April 2022, inmates have used the tablets to complete nearly 260,000 full, interactive courses, as well as more than 3.3 million learning resources like videos, audio recordings, and readings, Ishee said.

Courses are offered in more than 170 fields, according to the Department of Adult Correction, but Ishee said the most popular have been the ones that can provide people with tangible skills that could help them get jobs after prison.

At the top of the list was a training course offered by a culinary institute, and introductory courses to commercial driving, carpentry, electrical studies, legal studies, and plumbing — fields that Ishee said were less likely to care about an applicant’s history and were more concerned with whether they could do the job well.