Life Imprisonment Without Parole, but Teaching STEM Provides Her Meaning

Unlocked Labs, a nonprofit organisation co-founded by Jessica Hicklin, is revolutionising higher education in prisons. The edtech company focuses on making education more accessible for those behind bars by providing tools for data-tracking and content for existing programs.

The mission of Unlocked Labs is to enable hybrid learning in prisons, with a particular focus on teaching people incarcerated how to become technologists or software engineers. The organisation does not create content but builds the infrastructure for education technology in prisons, developing open-source edtech to facilitate in-prison access to higher education classes and vocational training.

One of the key objectives of Unlocked Labs is to help formerly incarcerated individuals enter the workforce. The company hires many of them to continue the mission and empowers justice-involved technologists to leverage their lived experience to build a better justice system.

The importance of helping those released from prison extends beyond altruism. Ninety-five percent of incarcerated individuals will live next door to the general public upon release. Helping them gain skills and education can decrease recidivism rates, which currently stand at 83% within 10 years. Education can also help reduce crime and lower tax dollars spent on incarceration.

Unlocked Labs has interfaced with 26 states to gauge interest in prison education programs. The goal is to analyse what keeps the 17% of released prisoners from being rearrested and identify best practices. The organisation collaborates with nonprofits like Ithaka S+R to provide an offline version of JSTOR, a renowned academic journal database.

Educators can approach their local department of corrections to express interest in teaching the prison population. By doing so, they can make a significant contribution to community safety and the future of those who have served their time.

Seventy percent of Unlocked Labs' team is formerly incarcerated, demonstrating the organisation's commitment to the cause. The benefits of helping formerly incarcerated individuals are manifold, from reducing crime to fostering a more inclusive and skilled workforce. Unlocked Labs is a shining example of how technology can be used to transform lives and communities for the better.