Part 2: 'I'm Trying to Get Home to My Family, Too.'. And I said, that's what I'm going to do, and I was in a different facility at that time - easier said than done. Could you talk just a little bit about the process? Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon are graduates of the Bard Prison Initiative. 4/22/2019 And then upon entering prison, I felt the same otherness that I felt while I was in middle and high school. As a result, the number of college-in-prison programs in New York fell from over 70 to 4. Novick directed the four-part documentary "College Behind Bars," which airs tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations. And I got there, and I took the entrance exam and sat in my cell and waited for the acceptance letter. BPI alumni overwhelmingly go home to their communities and give back in ways that positively impact the lives of others. DAVIES: Sebastian Yoon, what about connecting with your family? TATRO: Sure. It radiates and ramifies throughout my entire family structure, you know? DAVIES: Wow. And then this changed in the . But first, we need you to sign in to PBS using one of the services below. NOVICK: Yeah. I mean, it's a wide range of liberal arts curriculums. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. 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. Its about two miles away. After graduation, there were like, 30, on each side of the shower room just waiting for you. You know, you forgot your book; you can't just go back and get your book. However, I think that we also have to realize that we live in a country and we have an economy where the type of work that vocational training used to give you no longer exists. I mean, I think, you know, having taught in the program myself, you walk into class, and the students are there. While Rodney and Sebastian complete their 100-page senior projects and present them to fac, Men and women in prison for serious crimes try to earn college degrees in this groundbreaking story of incarceration, inju, When incarcerated students from the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI) Debate Union beat a team from Harvard, their victory made. A new PBS documentary series follows prisoners who earn college degrees while serving time. The recent PBS series, "College Behind Bars," chronicles Mr. Hall's eventual parole and release in 2015. You may change your parameters at any time using the link found at the bottom of every email. Josie Duffy Rice and co-host Derecka Purnell are joined by Dyjuan Tatro '18 andReadMore, The Bard Prison Initiative is a revolutionary program that provides a rigorous college education to men and women in prison. The Bard Prison Initiative enrolls over 300 incarcerated students in six New York State prisons. It's always a seminar style. And today, there are 300 students in six facilities in New York state, mostly men, but there's one facility for women as well. 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. rush medical college leadership; college behind bars where are they now. DAVIES: Dyjuan Tatro, what was your graduation experience like? And they really love to engage the professors and each other, and that was true for every single class. So it's just - it's really an open question. 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. TATRO: You know, I'm not taking it back to my cell and going to sleep with it. Since its first cohort in 2001, BPI students have earned over 52,000 credits and more than 550 Bard College degrees. So we really take the opportunity that we had seriously and try to give back in real, tangible ways to the wider population. Once enrolled, BPI students engage with the college full-time, embarking on a course of study that is ambitious and matches the breadth and intensity of any undergraduate learning experience. 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. BPI transforms wealth, power, and purpose in America by providing full-scholarship, college education in the most unlikely places. In the beginning, you don't even know how to use a comma. The PBSand Emmy-nominated documentary "College Behind Bars" seeks to showcase the students of BPI as well as the need for more prison college programs throughout the country. But while I was receiving that education, as I said, it was liberating. That's how I got my job at Open Society Foundations. 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 More, Funding for College Behind Bars is provided by Bank of America; PBS; Ford Foundation / JustFilms; National Endowment for the Humanities; College Behind Bars first premiered Nov. 25, 2019 on PBS and has since then become popular among Netflix audiences. College Behind Bars, an Emmy-nominated, four-part documentary about the transformative power of education. There are counts. College Behind Bars is a production of Skiff Mountain Films and is directed by Lynn Novick. Creating educational opportunities in prison nationwide. After a break, they'll talk about getting their degrees, leaving prison and rejoining their families and how they think a liberal arts education changed them. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "COLLEGE BEHIND BARS"). DAVIES: Tell us a little bit about the work you're doing. DAVIES: There was a time when higher education in correctional facilities was pretty common. 1. Our guests are Lynn Novick, who directed the documentary, and Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon, two graduates of the program. Funding provided by Bank of America, Ford Foundation / JustFilms, National Endowment for the Humanities, Meg & Tomas Bergstrand, Regina K. Scully, The Lise Strickler & Mark Gallogly Charitable Fund, a fund at The New York Community Trust, Patty Quillin through the Meadow Fund at Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Barbara & Richard Novick, Chicken & Egg Pictures, The William H. Donner Foundation, Hartley Film Foundation, Bertha Foundation, The Harnisch Foundation, Compton Foundation, and Lisa Philp.And members of The Better Angels Society: John & Catherine Debs, The Cousins Foundation, Inc., Abrams Foundation, Schwartz/Reisman Foundation, Ted Dintersmith & Elizabeth Hazard, McCloskey Family Charitable Trust, and Donna & Dick Strong. I recently binged born behind bars on A&E and was looking for any kind of update on these mamas/babies. You've just tried to add this show to My List. So I grew up in Flushing, Queens. My family loves Bard College. Even after you graduate, as long as you are in a prison in which Bard Prison Initiative operates, you're allowed to take courses. Theres Filipino food, theres Indian cuisine, theres Turkish cuisine, theres Asian food, theres Greek restaurants, theres a diversity. They contribute to their communities in all the ways one might expect of any college graduate. But the Allens still have mixed feelings about free degrees for inmates. And then I saw that it worked. 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. Also with us are Dyjuan Tatro and Sebastian Yoon, graduates of the program. I realized that all my experiences and my skills were related to prison work. You can just see this intellectual blossoming. He worked 11-hour shifts, so he was mostly at work. 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. Yoon and Tatro both entered prison as teenagers, and both earned bachelor's degrees in the Bard Prison Initiative. So let's just listen to this. SAVOR I usually order a venti Pike, not too strong. I grew up in a single-parent household, the child of a disabled mother. 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. DAVIES: You know, getting a liberal arts education is - it is a lot of work, and it expands one's horizons in a whole lot of ways. When that door closes, you're at Bard College. The series College Behind Bars aired on PBS on November 25 and 26 and is now available for free streaming on PBS.org through the end of January. It raises questions we urgently need to address: What is prison for? Novick is a Peabody Award-winning filmmaker and longtime collaborator of Ken Burns. The vast majority of people in this country that are incarcerated are going to be returning to society. And so, you know, I think we always need to consider that we're not talking about people in prison getting a degree in isolation, you know? And then I came to crave it more and more. And then this changed in the '90s when we had the crime bill, right? 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. And school was just really too easy. They spoke with FRESH AIR's Dave Davies. And, you know, just being in a classroom setting where I was sitting down with people from different backgrounds, listening to their stories and their ideas and you start to appreciate that despite the differences that we have, there are so much more similarities among us. How College in Prison Turns Around Lives and Saves Taxpayers Money, Knowledge & Redemption, A Conversation with Lynn Novick and Jule Hall, Incarcerated People Can Do More than Beat Harvard in a Debate. So, to savor this rich, hot drink in my hand is so fabulous with cinnamon, not too much sugar. So currently, I work as a program specialist with the Democracy Fund of Open Society Foundations, which is one of the biggest philanthropic organizations in the world. Gordon Ramsay, in 2012, featured the enterprise as part of the show Gordon Behind Bars. Virtually none return to prison. I believe that me having committed a crime doesn't make me a bad person. While I have little tastes for things, I dont make an elaborate breakfast. By Megan Heintz. So people in the corrections department recognize that as well. Most had circumstances early in their life, which were really, really tough, heartbreaking in many cases. And there's - I'll just let the listeners know there's an emotional moment here where you start to speak of your family, and you have to stop and compose yourself. And then, you know, you're approaching this search area, and you're in this liminal place. For streaming, visit pbs.org . This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. DAVIES: There was a time when higher education in correctional facilities was pretty common. 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. DAVIES: You know, I'd like, Sebastian and Dyjuan, to hear a little bit about how - reconciling with your families. This film is about the transformative power of education while also confronting and challenging conventional thinking about the purpose of both education and incarceration. "College Behind Bars" follows students in the Bard Prison Initiative, a privately funded college program that began in 2001 in New York state prisons. Creating educational opportunities in prison nationwide. And you can just see it. This movement took on renewed urgency following Congresss reinstatement of Pell Grant access to incarcerated students in 2020. But I usually put on jazz or R&B. Recidivism rates skyrocketed for a variety of reasons, including this, and slowly, some privately funded programs started to come back in. You know, Lynn Novick, I believe this project grew out of your own experience teaching a course, right? The four-part series follows the journey of men and women incarcerated in. 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. 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 small group of incarcerated men and women struggling to earn college degrees and turn their lives around in one of the most rigorous and effective prison education programs in the United States the Bard Prison Initiative. By Jamil Smith Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. We, you know, without quite realizing at the beginning, have ended up exploring this really deep question. Colleges or universities partnering in the Consortium. I wake up every morning and I realize Im free and Im just so grateful to be here.. She spent four years in prisons taping material for the documentary, which is her solo directorial debut. We're going to start coursework Monday morning. 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. YOON: But to those who would ask that question, Dave, you could also ask them, would you ask the same question of students who are out here? They have both been to prison. For the NFLs My Cause My Cleats campaign, Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins explains why he chose to highlight the College Behind Bars prison reform initiative. So it totally enthralled me and motivated me to go after this education with pure zeal. And it's just really, really - has been so emotional for me to see their reaction and have their support through all this and be able to share so much positivity with them after having gone through so much darkness in life. Simpson and Fritsch have a new book called "Crime In Progress." They appear in the PBS documentary "College Behind Bars," directed by Lynn Novick. YOON: And it was a very interesting moment for me where I realized that the education that I was receiving in prison was the same education that I would receive had I gone to college out there. After the federal Pell ban in 1994, New York implemented a ban on TAP eligibility in 1995. fevereiro 17, 2023; Posted by nene leakes father alan; 17 . I'm a son. DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR, and we're discussing the new four-part PBS documentary "College Behind Bars." You're looking ahead. What kind of courses are taught? GROSS: FRESH AIR's executive producer is Danny Miller. 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. DAVIES: And your dad went through some really tough times, sent you to Korea when you were little 'cause he was trying to find a way to keep things together. Creating educational opportunities in prison nationwide. "Officer Leath was a true example of an officer dedicated not only to safety and security of the prison infant unit, but also exemplified the goal to help incarcerated women become good mothers before leaving . Read BPIs open letter here. And I just wonder if you could reflect a bit on how it might have changed you - Dyjuan. You may change your parameters at any time using the link found at the bottom of every email. So I pedal pretty forcefully to get a workout. I was in a poor, disadvantaged community, and I ended up at a very young age in gangs. 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. YOON: Oh, yeah, without a doubt. During the 2016 presidential campaign, they were hired by Republicans and then by Democrats and investigated connections between Trump and Russia. The BPI student body mirrors that of the prison system at large: students come from communities with the fewest quality educational opportunities that are most impacted by crises of hyper-policing and mass incarceration. Find standards-aligned teaching resources for In the fall of 2015, a maximum-security prison in New York invited Harvards debate team to compete against a squad of three incarcerated men. How much noise is there, and does that make it hard to read, Dyjuan? But one of the things that was also great - there are instances where the other prisoners would accommodate us, where they would say, you know, the Bard guys are working at this table; let's go over here and make noise, or, like, the Bard guys are in the room - in their rooms studying. You know, I am originally from Albany, N.Y. Roberta Shorrock directs the show. YOON: Oh. 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. The students have a quite impressive breadth of curriculum. Copyright 2019 NPR. And I kind of froze in place and just looked around the room and just felt really, really inspired. Teaching resources for I mean, anybody who watches this film will think, gosh, I don't know if I could handle this stuff. In spring 2021 the NYS legislature passed the bill, and it was signed into law in July 2021. Meet the cast of Behind Bars: Rookie Year on A&E. Get season by season character and cast bios and more only on A&E. PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. DAVIES: And if you're in class when it's time for a count, what happens? Who has access to educational opportunity? At BPI, we are committed to investing in people, reinventing institutions and making genuine education more accessible. it is the only time that they can trust they . I just committed a bad act. And the paradox here is that I was someone getting that type of education while I was in prison, but the education itself is what liberated me. Students accepted to the program take classes in prison taught by Bard College faculty, using the same materials and meeting the same standards as students on the college's main campus. 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. With so much at stake, BPI is doubling down on our commitments to national engagement in policy and practice including The BPI Summer Residency for emerging programs and practitioners. 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 . GROSS: Sebastian Yoon and Dyjuan Tatro earned bachelor's degrees from the Bard Prison Initiative. Believe this project grew out of your own experience teaching a course right... Time for a count, what happens tonight and tomorrow night on PBS stations ramifies throughout my entire family,! Project grew out of your own experience teaching a course, right for further information born Bars! To crave it more and more access to incarcerated students in six new York State prisons in... A comma you know, Lynn Novick a single-parent household, the child a! Alumni overwhelmingly go Home to their communities in all the ways one might expect of any college graduate they! Had seriously and try to give back in real, tangible ways to the wider population college education the! 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