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Commissioner Laveist applauds ongoing discussions between USM and prison on providing education for inmates
by St. Maarten Government Information Service (GIS)
Posted: May 27, 2007 01:52 UTC
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PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten - Commissioner responsible for Labour & Social Affairs Louie Laveist, says he is in full support of the discussions that have been taking place between the University of St. Martin (USM) and the Prison management regarding providing education for inmates.
USM is looking into whether to offer the General Equivalency Diploma (GED) and English as a Second Language (ESL) courses, and even the Associates in Business programme or a certificate programme on entrepreneurship.
“A prison was designed to confine and isolate the criminal violator from law abiding citizens. It is a widely held belief that the time spent in prison is to change the thoughts and actions of the convicted felon and return the individual to society as a positive contributor.
“A significant factor determining the success of a person who leaves prison is his or her educational level. Some studies in the U.S. have shown that prior to being imprisoned; most of the individuals were unemployed and had less academic achievement than the national average.
“There are national U.S. studies that reveal it is less expensive to educate prisoners and prepare for release, than to allow them to return to society without any benefits and possibly re-offend. Therefore, the introduction of a program to prepare offenders for the future once they serve their time is necessary in order to improve their life chances.
“The education received from taking these courses or associate degree programs are an invaluable provision upon release when inmates journey back into the community,” Commissioner Louie Laveist told the Government Information Service (GIS) on Friday.
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