College Behind Bars
2019 · PBS · 60 min · 1 season
S01E04 · Part 4: 'Home is a Work in Progress'
Wed, 27 Nov, 4:00 am
The debate team faces Harvard. Seniors complete their 100-paged thesis projects. Giovannie is sent to the Special Housing Unit (SHU) and might not finish his project. Students at Taconic and Eatern receive their degrees at graduation.
About
Shot over four years in maximum and medium security prisons in New York State, the four-hour film takes viewers on a stark and intimate journey into one of the most pressing issues of our time – our failure to provide meaningful rehabilitation for the over two million Americans living behind bars. Through the personal stories of the students and their families, the film reveals the transformative power of higher education and puts a human face on America's criminal justice crisis. It raises questions we urgently need to address: What is prison for? Who has access to educational opportunity? Who among us is capable of academic excellence? How can we have justice without redemption?
Episodes
- E01
Part 1: 'No One Ever Taught Me Any of That.'
Tue, 26 Nov· 60 minIncarcerated men and women at Eastern and Taconic Correctional facilities are admitted to the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI). When classes begin, they discover they must meet the same high standards as students on Bard College main campus.
- E02
Part 2: 'I'm Trying to Get Home to My Family, Too.'
Tue, 26 Nov· 60 minStudents address the difficult circumstances of their past. The debate team prepares to face the University of Vermont. Some make strides academically, as others are sent to the Special Housing Unit, SHU, jeopardizing their education.
- E03
Part 3: 'Every Single Word Matters'
Wed, 27 Nov· 60 minThe debate team faces West Point. Seniors embark on their thesis projects. Rodney and Dyjuan's families visit, while Tamara receives terrible news from home. Shawta reckons with her path to prison and Jule struggles to find work in NYC.
- E04
Part 4: 'Home is a Work in Progress'
Wed, 27 Nov· 60 minThe debate team faces Harvard. Seniors complete their 100-paged thesis projects. Giovannie is sent to the Special Housing Unit (SHU) and might not finish his project. Students at Taconic and Eatern receive their degrees at graduation.
