The “rise and fall” of prison education with Reiko Hillyer

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.