Number of Vocational Education Certificates Awarded to Inmates

Over 36.0% (approximately 3,500) of the inmate population lacks a high school diploma or GED.  Of this group, nearly 45.0% (approximately 1,600) will be released within five years. According to a RAND Corporation meta-analysis of the effectiveness of correctional education, offenders generally have lower levels of education and employability skills, to include vocational skills, as compared to the general population. This, as well as the stigma of a felony record and the lack of sustained steady employment prior to and during incarceration, serves as barriers to finding and keeping a job after release. Participation in correctional education programs, to include vocational education, has been shown to reduce recidivism rates by 13.0% as compared to offenders who do not participate in correctional education programs. Further, offenders who have participated in vocational education have been found to have a 28.0% greater chance of finding employment over those who did not participate in such programs.

In some cases, quarterly data has been annualized to provide a better comparison to prior fiscal years.  Generally, measures that use percentages have been annualized.  This prevents distortions in the quarterly data that may occur because of smaller populations sizes.  Measures that show the numbers of incidents, activities or individuals reflect actual numbers for the quarter.  This allows users to see progress from one quarter to the next towards identified goals.