Welcome to the UNC Asheville Prison Education Initiative!
We see past the present to a post-carceral society achieved through intentional educational opportunities grounded in antiracism and trauma-informed practices. Our Mission is to:
- Offer high-quality liberal arts education to students in carceral institutions in Western North Carolina
- Collaborate with community partners in developing resources to ensure those students’ educational success post-release
- Design and deliver educational opportunities for children and families of justice-involved individuals
- Advocate for education-related reform in criminal justice
Recent News & Events
Education Behind Bars: UNCA Prison Education Program Celebrates Student Success: Fall 2025
Small but deeply meaningful ceremonies held in a tiny classroom at Buncombe County Detention Facility mark the completion of each UNCA class, conferring hard earned college credit to men and women detained there awaiting trial. These ceremonies – complete with speeches, handshakes, official college transcripts, cherished cups of coffee and sweets, and an appreciative audience of Buncombe County Officials – also mark the crossing of a powerful threshold, conferring a distinction of “scholar” to people most often identified as detainees.
On September 15th, men in STAT 185: Introduction to Statistics gathered for their completion ceremony. Just two days later, on September 17th, women who completed SOC 100: Introduction to Sociology celebrated their own milestone. Then, on November 17th, women celebrated the completion of HUM174: Fate and Free Will in Greek Tragedy, and men were honored for their successful work in SOC100 on November 19th.
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UNC Asheville PEP Celebrates Student Success at Buncombe County Detention Facility
On Monday, June 23th, 2025, our program celebrated the completion of MCOM 104: Introduction to Mass Communication, taught by Professor Martha Gates. Over the course of 8 weeks, a class of 8 men examined ethical theories and frameworks used in mass communication, applied them to real-world scenarios and case studies, strengthened public speaking and speechwriting skills through structured assignments and presentations, and engaged in meaningful dialogue with peers. This course transfers as a social science general education requirement and gives students a foundation in writing, public speaking, information literacy, and various modalities of communication.
Celebration of Course Completion: Buncombe County Detention Facility
On Monday, February 17th, 2025, our program celebrated the completion of our first college-credit bearing course at Buncombe County Detention Facility with the students and Buncombe County officials. Officer Michael Holton, programming supervisor at BCDF, and Buncombe County Detention Facility as a whole provided crucial support and hard work in making HUM174, a class that transfers across community colleges and universities as a general ed humanities elective, a reality.
Collaboration with Buncombe County Detention Facility
We are currently collaborating with the Buncombe County Detention Facility to offer credit-bearing college courses at the facility. A celebration of course completion takes place on Monday, February 17th, 2025.
Laughing Gull Foundation Grant
In November 2024, UNC Asheville’s Prison Education Program was awarded a $50,000 grant by the Laughing Gull Foundation (LGF) to support the program, specifically our collaboration with Mayland Community College.
Our Prison Education Network
UNC Asheville’s PEP actively participates in the North Carolina Prison Education Consortium (NCPEC), and Leslee Johnson, our PEP Director, currently serves as secretary of this organization, which brings together state universities, community colleges, North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (NCDAC) and state-wide Re-entry Councils and non-profits serving justice impacted individuals with a specific focus on the role and value of Higher Education in Prison (HEP) on positive outcomes and increased opportunity.
Upcoming Collaborations
Collaboration is underway between UNC Asheville’s PEP, Mayland Community College, and the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections (NCDAC) to support a new cohort of incarcerated students. Mayland CC will deliver an AAS in Business Administration, supported by academic advising by UNC Asheville in order for students to continue their education journeys with a foundation that sets them up to pursue a four-year degree.
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Stay Connected
The UNC Asheville Prison Education Program is funded through the Laughing Gull Foundation