Education Not Incarceration

For decades, activists, educators, and reformers have argued that the United States invests far too much in cages and not enough in classrooms. The slogan “Education Not Incarceration” has its roots in civil rights and prison abolition movements, and it continues to resonate as the U.S. struggles with the dual crises of mass incarceration and student debt.

A Tale of Two Investments

From the mid-20th century through the 1970s, states expanded public colleges alongside the GI Bill, and tuition at flagship universities was often negligible. But by the 1980s, under austerity politics and “tough on crime” policies, that trajectory shifted.

State budgets began to favor prisons over universities. Between 1980 and 2013, state spending on corrections ballooned by 89 percent, while higher education spending inched up just 5 percent. In several states—California being the most notable—new prison construction far outpaced new campus building.

This was not accidental. The War on Drugs, mandatory minimum sentencing, and “three strikes” laws filled prisons, while tuition hikes and declining aid shifted the cost of higher education onto families. Mass incarceration and the privatization of higher ed became two parallel pillars of neoliberal America.

The School-to-Prison Pipeline

The connection begins early. Underfunded K–12 schools, especially in Black and Latino neighborhoods, often act as feeders to juvenile justice and adult prison systems. Harsh disciplinary policies, zero-tolerance rules, and the presence of police in schools contribute to what is known as the school-to-prison pipeline.

Students pushed out of schools rarely end up in selective universities. Instead, they face a narrow track: low-wage work, unemployment, incarceration—or enrollment in predatory for-profit colleges, where they are saddled with debt and worthless credentials.

Education Behind Bars

The fight for “Education Not Incarceration” has also taken place inside prisons. In the 1960s and 1970s, incarcerated people at Attica, San Quentin, and other facilities demanded access to higher education as part of broader calls for human dignity. College-in-prison programs once flourished, supported by federal Pell Grants.

That changed in 1994, when Congress banned incarcerated students from receiving Pell funding. Prison higher education programs collapsed overnight. For nearly 30 years, most incarcerated people were locked out of college classrooms, even as study after study showed that education reduces recidivism.

In 2023, Pell access was finally restored. Advocates estimate that up to 760,000 incarcerated people may benefit, though challenges remain: limited program availability, predatory institutions, and ongoing stigma.

Barriers After Release

Even after incarceration, the barriers persist. College applications often include “the box” asking about criminal records. Financial aid restrictions, housing discrimination, and employment bans make reintegration extraordinarily difficult. Education, while potentially transformative, is often blocked at every stage.

Why the Divide Matters

The U.S. now spends roughly $80 billion annually on prisons, compared to $70 billion on higher education. The balance between these investments reflects a broader choice: do we build a society where opportunity is expanded, or one where inequality is locked in?

At its core, the idea of “Education Not Incarceration” challenges the logic of punishment over opportunity. It argues that every dollar spent on prisons without addressing education is a dollar spent on perpetuating inequality.

A Continuing Struggle

From the Black Panther Party’s community schools to today’s college-in-prison advocates, generations have demanded a shift in priorities. Yet higher education itself is fractured—plagued by student debt, adjunct labor, and corporate capture. Without structural reform, the danger remains that higher education will not be a true alternative to incarceration, but simply another system of exploitation.

Still, the vision remains powerful: a nation that builds universities, not prisons; classrooms, not cages.

Sources

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Changing Priorities: State Criminal Justice Reforms and Investments in Education (2014).

RAND Corporation, Evaluating the Effectiveness of Correctional Education (2013).

U.S. Department of Education, Pell Grants for Incarcerated Students (2023).

Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow (2010).

Ruth Wilson Gilmore, Golden Gulag (2007).