Description

From Johnson’s Great Society to Clinton’s crime bill, Reiko Hillyer discusses the “rise and fall” of higher education in US prisons. Plus, she shares her experience as a professor who teaches in prisons.

References mentioned this episode:

• Reiko Hillyer. 2024. A Wall is Just a Wall: The Permeability of the Prison in 20th Century America. Duke University Press.
• Piper Hutchinson. May 2, 2025. “Guts, glory and opportunity on the outside.” Louisiana Illuminator.
• Classroom 4 film https://www.classroom4film.com/ 
• Mneesha Gellman. 2022. Education Behind the Wall: Why and How We Teach in Prison. Brandeis University Press.
• Justin McDevitt and Mneesha Gellman. 2024. Unlocking Learning: International Perspectives on Education in Prison. Brandeis University Press.
• Lyndsay Faye. 2019. The Paragon Hotel. G. P. Putnam’s Sons.
• Attica Locke. 2012. The Cutting Season. Amistad.

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Get in touch. Want to request a topic or pitch an episode? Email Lauren at shephell@iu.edu