This presentation examines the progressive nature of the California Community Colleges System, which consists of 116 colleges, with special reference to the HBCU Transfer Guarantee Project between the California Community Colleges System and HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities). It also discusses the positive characteristics of the California Community Colleges System for ex-inmates and others; presents some statistics regarding students in the California Community Colleges System in terms of race and ethnicity; addresses the regressive nature of the Prison-Industrial Complex as a system, which includes 34 state prisons in California; covers the negative characteristics of the Prison-Industrial Complex as a system for inmates and their families; and presents some statistics regarding inmates in the Prison-Industrial Complex in terms of race and ethnicity. In sum, this presentation argues that a viable educational solution for mass incarceration is the HBCU Transfer Guarantee Project between the California Community Colleges System and HBCUs. Likewise, it argues that the state of California should send more people to college instead of prison. An analysis of the available data shows that the state of California spends about $81,000 in taxpayer funds per year to incarcerate each adult. In contrast, an analysis of the available data shows that the state of California spends about $7,500 per year in taxpayer funds on each fulltime student. This presentation utilizes a mixed-methods approach consisting of the case study method and the secondary data analysis method. The research techniques include participant observation and content analysis of primary and secondary source documents.

Speaker: J. Vern Cromartie

Published in: World Congress on Education, 2022

• Date of Conference: 21-23 June, 2022
• DOI: 10.20533/WCE.2022.0003
• Electronic ISBN: 978-1-913572-50-1
• Conference Location: Virtual (Mississauga, Canada)