On April 11, 2021, 29 Prison Education Program students began their higher educational journey. This began with a College Readiness course focusing on Chris Wilson’s The Master Plan (2019) and James Clear’s Atomic Habits. Students used Clear’s book to analyze habits that were foundational to Wilson’s success. Students were introduced to norms of academic discussion and provided with a crash course on writing academic essays. Ultimately, students wrote and revised their own Master Plan. The highlight of the college readiness sessions was the guest speakers, especially, returning citizens George Chochos, Terrell Blount, and Chris Wilson. Students then embarked on their first semester of courses which included INST 140, Introduction to Faith, Reason, and Justice, ENGL 100, Fundamentals of Writing, and FAPA 132, Creativity and the Arts Exposed. 

PEP welcomed its second cohort of students on April 18, 2023! Students read Chris Wilson’s The Master Plan and analyzed the text through the lenses of habits, community, and resilience. Students in the second cohort were also able to meet with Chris Wilson over Zoom. This is likely our last cohort with the text, but reading and learning from Chris Wilson has been wonderful.