WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State House Democrats

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

Education – the key to success

Rep. Eric Pettigrew speaks in a House Appropriations Subcomittee on EducationOLYMPIA – Late last week, the House Committee on Higher Education voted unanimously to move State Rep. Eric Pettigrew’s, House Bill 1704 out of committee. The bill will allow the Dept. of Corrections (DOC) to provide higher education to those who qualify within existing budgetary resources.

“The average age of a prisoner in Washington state is 37 years old. That’s pretty young. And upon their release, many return home to my district,” said Pettigrew. “If we don’t allow these men and women to develop the skills they need in prison to get a job upon release, then they will fall back into the same patterns that put them in prison in the first place – drugs, instability, violence and poverty. We need to stop the revolving door.Education is the key.”

Currently, Washington’s DOC is prohibited from using any funds to provide secondary education. Correctional facilities are allowed to offer some vocational training, but nothing beyond that. HB 1704 changes this statute and also authorizes the DOC to solicit and accept grants and donations for higher education.

“The evidence is overwhelming,” said Pettigrew. “A quality education is the springboard to success for everyone – even inmates. Almost half of those who go to prison will end up behind bars again. But research shows that for those who receive some higher education in prison, the recidivism rate is halved. This is about doing what works.”

Postsecondary education can change the mentality within prisons, give inmates motivation to better themselves and a real chance to succeed. Prisons that offer postsecondary education also have reduced incidents of violence.

HB 1704 will now move to the House Rules Committee.