Close to 200 people are expected to start the Prison Education Program, known as PEP, at three prisons across the state this August, signifying growth for a program that aims to give second chances to incarcerated people.

PEP is managed by Southeast Arkansas College, a public community college in Pine Bluff, and is funded by a federal Pell grant. It launched in the fall of 2022, and operates at Cummins, Varner and Delta Regional prison units.

The college has partnered with the Arkansas Department of Corrections, Restore Hope’s Second Chance Education Initiative and the U.S. Department of Education’s Second Chance Pell Experimental Site Initiative.

Incarcerated students enrolled in the program can earn an associate’s degree with credits that can be transferred to fulfill requirements a

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