State budget cuts have meant eliminating programs that help prison inmates learn to read and earn GEDs. But a community college in western Kansas is stepping in to help. Secretary of Corrections Ray Roberts told a legislative committee today (TUE) that inmates who earn a GED are less likely to return to prison after being released.
Education programs were cut at five prisons. Barton Community College has used grant money to restore the education services at facilities in Ellsworth and Larned. Roberts says they’re working to see if other colleges could help reinstate additional education programs.