Gendered Disparities in Educational and Vocational Programming in America\u27s Prisons

Female inmates in America’s prisons have been exposed to gender-stereotyped rehabilitative programs and have faced a limitation in educational and vocational programming compared to male inmates. Dating back to earlier 1970s, literature has highlighted disparities in educational and vocational programs between female and male prisons and a rise in female incarceration rates. This study identifies female and male inmate educational and vocational programming across the US; and examines whether gendered disparities continue to exist between inmate programming as documented in past research. Data for this study were collected by examining publicly available sources such as Department of Correction websites and public records for all fifty states. Specific measures were gathered and analyzed for this study including: program counts and descriptions, inmate populations, and facility-specific characteristics. Through a mixed methods approach and analyzation of descriptive data, this research will serve as a basis for identifying gendered disparities. This will expose a reality which can impede female offenders during the transition from prison to the community known as reintegration. Study findings will add to the literature by providing current information on the contemporary status of the gendered disparities regarding inmate programming. Winner, Outstanding Oral Presentation, College of the Sciences