Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

First Prison Program Students to Receive Associate of Arts Degree from SLU

  • 10/23/15

ST LOUIS, MO – Saint Louis University (SLU) and the Missouri Department of Corrections recently announced the graduation of the first students in the innovative Associate of Arts degree program offered by the university's Prison Program.

The SLU Prison Program is the only onsite degree granting program in the United States that serves both the incarcerated as well as those who work in the facility. The program is operated out of the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center (ERDCC) in Bonne Terre, MO, in coordination with the Missouri Department of Corrections.

The program began in 2008 when a small group of SLU faculty — inspired by SLU's Jesuit mission — began holding theological studies classes with 15 incarcerated men at the ERDCC. The effort expanded to include prison staff with the creation of the Associate of Arts degree program in 2010. Since then, more than 20 professors have taught courses there ranging from philosophy to mathematics.

Department of Corrections staff students will participate in the mid-year commencement ceremony at the Chaifetz Arena on Friday, December 11, 2015.

On Monday, November 23, 2015, SLU will host a special graduation ceremony at the ERDCC for incarcerated students. SLU President Fred Pestello will deliver the commencement address.

About the Saint Louis University Prison Program
The SLU Prison Program is a Jesuit-inspired initiative that provides education to prison staff and people incarcerated in Missouri, promotes service and conducts research on education and incarceration.

Featured

  • Designing for Every Mind

    Learning environments have the power to shape not just what students know, but who they become. When a school is designed with genuine empathy—for the full range of ways students think, sense, and engage with the world—it becomes more than a building. It becomes a catalyst for growth, confidence, and belonging. That is the animating idea behind neurodiverse design, and it is one that is transforming how more architects and designers are thinking about school design.

  • Virginia Tech Tops Out New College of Engineering Building

    Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., recently celebrated the topping out of Mitchell Hall, which will soon stand as the largest College of Engineering building on campus, according to a news release. The university partnered with Skanska on the 285,500-square-foot facility, which has an expected completion date of winter 2028.

  • Q&A: How to Prevent Kitchen Grease Fires in Commercial Kitchens

    School cafeterias and university dining halls serve thousands of meals daily, relying on high-heat equipment like fryers, grills, and ovens. While these operations keep students fed, they also generate significant grease-laden vapors. Without proper controls, this grease becomes a silent fire threat. As a certified exhaust cleaning specialist and business coach who has helped hundreds of institutional facilities achieve NFPA 96 compliance, I emphasize that proactive grease management isn’t optional; it’s a core fire/life safety practice.

  • Tomball ISD Opens New Tomball West High School

    Tomball Independent School District in Tomball, Texas, recently celebrated the official opening of Tomball West High School, the district's third comprehensive high school, with a community ribbon-cutting ceremony, according to a district news release.