Three residents of the Lansing Correctional Facility (LCF) graduated this month with Associate Degrees in Business Administration through Donnelly College in Kansas City, Kansas thanks to expansion of the Second Chance Pell program. A commencement ceremony held in the Visitation Room saw Andrew Claude, Barben Beraiah, and Polo Miller donning caps and gowns as they received their degrees.

The U.S. Department of Education launched the Second Chance Pell program in 2015 for incarcerated individuals to allow them to participate in postsecondary education programs. 

The coordinated efforts between Donnelly College and KDOC allows residents at all security levels of the facility to continue their education pathway and earn their Associate’s degree in business administration. Completion of the Donnelly program or other education programs has shown to have an increase in opportunities for employment and a decrease in recidivism upon reentry into the community.

Approximately 98 percent of men and women in Kansas prisons today will return to live as our neighbors and members of our society.