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| Quarter of prison education jobs are vacant |
| By newmexicoindependent.com |
| Published: 09/23/2009 |
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At a time when a governor-appointed council is working to reduce the “revolving door” of offenders who wind up back behind bars, state prisons officials seem not to be wielding a key recidivism-reducing weapon: education. Roughly a quarter of 111 jobs in the state prison system’s education bureau – 27 – are vacant, meaning up to a quarter of inmates might not be in classes because there aren’t enough teachers to conduct classes, says Gail Oliver, who last month retired as deputy corrections secretary for prisoner re-entry in the Department of Corrections. “That’s huge. And it is going to get worse,” Oliver told the Independent. The high vacancy rate seems to place a drag on the state’s efforts to reduce recidivism, a priority Gov. Bill Richardson has touted as part of his prison reform package leading into the 2010 legislative session. And a department-wide hiring freeze that exempts only corrections officers and parole/probation officers means filling the positions isn’t a likely option, at least for now. “It hinges on the budget situation,” corrections spokeswoman Rosie Sais said via e-mail Monday. The prisons budget suffered a $12.5 million cut this budget year, and further cuts may be on the horizon. Richardson and top lawmakers are debating how to cover a mid-year shortfall of more than $400 million in the state budget, and one area of disagreement is how much to take from state agencies. Richardson has suggested 3 percent cuts, but some top lawmakers have said deeper cuts may be necessary. Prison education programs are often cited as a major key to reducing recidivism, the rate of offenders who return to lockup within 36 months after their release. Some studies have concluded that participants in educational programs are 10 percent to 20 percent less prone to re-offend. Read More. |
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