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Celebration of Course Completion: Buncombe County Detention Facility

Spring 2025

Written by Ashton Henderson

At UNC Asheville, we believe education is a human right and a powerful catalyst for positive change. Our Prison Education Program (PEP) brings credit-bearing general education and liberal arts courses into correctional facilities, creating opportunities for incarcerated students to pursue intellectual growth, build confidence, and prepare for successful reentry into society. Prison education extends beyond the classroom. We work to guide incarcerated students toward a better future and ensure lower recidivism rates.

Numerous studies have shown that prison education is one of the most effective tools in reducing recidivism and creating a more effective justice system. According to the RAND Corporation, incarcerated individuals who participate in educational programs are 43% less likely to return to prison than those who do not. Additionally, every dollar invested in prison education saves nearly five dollars in reincarceration costs. By equipping individuals with academic skills, critical thinking abilities, and a renewed sense of purpose, programs like UNC Asheville’s PEP significantly improve post-release outcomes. These efforts not only benefit the individual but also contribute to safer communities and a more just, rehabilitative criminal justice system.

The real power of our work, though, is not in the statistics. It’s in the stories of real people. UNCA Professor Martha Gates recently shared her experience with the Prison Education Program. Teaching a variety of classes in a number of different correctional facilities, Professor Gates believes that educating incarcerated students gives them something that cannot be taken away. She states, “Learning and pursuing a better future has helped a number of my students build confidence, and instills pride in them. Behind the cement walls of prison, it is easy to feel helpless, but engaging in academics allows them to see themselves as capable, as worthy.” Professor Gates also stressed the importance of expanding prison education. “In the future, I would really love to see prison education being implemented in every correctional facility, and for students to be able to receive full degrees. Ten to twelve weeks of education is simply not enough.”

Professor Gates taught MCOM 104: Introduction to Mass Communication for UNC Asheville’s program at the Buncombe County Detention Facility (BCDF) this spring. 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, fostering collaboration and thoughtful engagement on media-related issues. 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. Students celebrated their successful completion of the class on June 23rd. In an anonymous exit survey created by PEP alum Matthew Ellington, one student reported, “[The class] provided me with the confidence to move forward with my education.” Another wrote, “My confidence and ambition have grown tremendously.” When asked about the most positive or meaningful part of their experiences, students praised “teamwork and preparation for each class”; “public speaking”; and “the whole experience, really . . . it definitely is a motivation towards something better while in jail.” The experience of the class, in one student’s words, made him aware of his “ability. College was intimidating at first,” he writes. “Now I know I’ll do better than fine.”

UNC Asheville continues its offering of credit-bearing classes at the detention facility, currently offering SOC 100: Introduction to Sociology to 8 women, taught by Professor Ella Siegrist. Due to the shorter-term nature of an individual’s stay at the jail, where detainees are awaiting trial—the outcomes of which could be release into their home communities or transfer to a state prison to serve longer sentences—these classes offer a foundation for continuing their education at community colleges, universities, and other prison education programs. In order to guide students in these determinations, UNC Asheville programming at BCDF includes academic advising, educational goal-setting, and support for navigating questions about transfer, financial aid, and application processes. All students at BCDF receive a sealed copy of their official college transcripts at the conclusion of every course. UNC Asheville’s program is currently at work setting up a student resource center in person at the facility to provide continuous support for students currently enrolled in classes and individuals at the facility who are curious about what it would look like to continue their education on the inside and in their home communities.

Prison education confronts the outdated narrative of who deserves a second chance. For many incarcerated students, access to college-level courses is the first time they are seen as scholars, not just inmates. Education builds self-respect, discipline, and hope, offering tools that prepare individuals for successful reintegration into their communities. It challenges the cycle of incarceration by replacing punitive social isolation with real opportunity.

We invite you to join us in this work. The pursuit of a better justice system is collective and evolving. Whether you’re a faculty member, a community partner, a potential donor, or a volunteer mentor, your involvement helps open doors for those who deserve a second chance. Together, we can expand access to opportunity and empower people to reclaim their future—one course at a time.

Celebration of Course Completion: Buncombe County Detention Facility

Spring 2025

A note from our Director, Leslee Johnson

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. We are all excited to continue this relationship in which UNC Asheville’s Prison Education Program offers college credits to Buncombe County detainees. Sheriff Quentin E. Miller was in attendance to congratulate students and voice support for the value and continuation of offering college classes to incarcerated individuals in Buncombe County.

The students who completed the course with top grades – Mr. Brown, Mr. Cordell, Mr. Kitchen and Mr. Malone – consistently showed up with energy, dedication, creativity, and sharp intelligence to work, learn and to teach me, each from their own perspective and imagination. We covered a lot of ground from within the classroom. Students dug deep into origin stories of the past, and crafted their own origin stories, influenced by ancient religions and cosmologies. They mined the present through research – everything from media bias on race, to hate speech, to indigenous sovereignty, to the role of religion in social justice movements – and they projected future visions of a world from their imaginations, informed by what they’d learned, creating science fiction pieces rooted in ancient wisdom and possibilities both hopeful and just. As their instructor, I had a hard time keeping up, sometimes! As Director of UNCA’s PEP and instructor of the first course, it was a pleasure to serve in this capacity, and to work towards continuing this collaboration, supporting the academic and professional futures of these and future students.

Students were presented students with their official transcripts, and a certificate of completion of HUM174 that names what they’ve accomplished:

• Explored identity, society, and advocacy through global cultural, religious, and philosophical traditions, connecting historical perspectives to personal growth and modern challenges.
• Analyzed works of influential thinkers from Africa, India, and the Americas to understand their impact on contemporary thought, media, and creative expression.
• Developed critical thinking skills to discern cultural influences in popular media and refine personal perspectives.
• Engaged in creative and reflective writing, artistic composition, and rhetorical analysis to enhance self-expression and lifelong learning.
• Produced original works to communicate ideas effectively with consideration given to various audiences.
• Strengthened communication and advocacy skills to support continued education, career development, and positive social engagement.
• Completed two writing assignments and one research project with an annotated bibliography, demonstrating research proficiency, analytical depth, and academic writing skills.