The Prison Education Project hosted a successful summer workshop series this July, featuring three workshops facilitated by various members of the Washington University in St. Louis academic and professional community.
Jan Duchek, Associate Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences and of Occupational Therapy and Director of The Learning Center, led an “Achieving Academic Success: Tips and Tools” workshop on July 21. During this three hour-long workshop, students completed and interpreted the results of a study skills self-assessment that covered topics related to time management, study strategies, and note-taking. Jan also held one-on-one and small group discussions with students about their personal study strategies, their academic strengths and challenges, and the unique obstacles they face as students taking college courses in a prison environment.
On July 29, Rebecca O’Laughlin, WashU School of Continuing & Professional Studies (CAPS) Academic Advisor and Recruitment Coordinator, and Emily Ketrow, CAPS Accountant, presented “School of Continuing & Professional Studies: An Overview”. This workshop focused on how students can continue to pursue a Washington University education post-release, as well as the financial and academic planning involved in continuing with their degree through CAPS. Rebecca and Emily discussed financial aid and scholarships, the various degree programs that CAPS offers, and the specific program requirements for Associate’s and Bachelor’s degrees.
Sarah Birch presented the third and final workshop of the summer, “Pathways in Social Work,” on July 30. Sarah is the Brown School’s Admissions & Recruitment Specialist, and she spoke not only about the degrees offered in the field of social work, but also about the applications of social work across different fields of interest. During her workshop, she discussed the intricacies of undergraduate and graduate programs in social work, as well as the different types of career pathways available to individuals with a social work degree.
To learn more about intellectual life at Missouri Eastern Correctional Center outside the classroom, click here.