Georgia Prison Education Funding: Current Policies

Prison education reduces recidivism by 43%. Georgia just cut its prison education program. Georgia State University’s Prison Education Project was forced to stop accepting students after a $24.4 million budget cut. Over 48,000 inmates lack access to education while the state spends $372 million on prisons. In 2023, only 38 bachelor’s degrees and 87 associate’s degrees were awarded across the entire system. Georgia invests in incarceration, not rehabilitation. ¹

What Education Accomplishes

The research is clear:

• 43% reduction in recidivism for education program participants
• $4-5 saved for every $1 spent on prison education
• Bard Prison Initiative — less than 4% of graduates return to prison vs. 40% nationally
• Employment rates increase significantly for educated inmates post-release

Education transforms outcomes. Georgia defunds it.

Current Funding Crisis

Georgia’s prison education is collapsing:

• $24.4 million budget cut forced Georgia State’s program closure
• More cuts expected in 2025
• Pell Grant compliance costs burden universities trying to serve inmates
• Morehouse College relies on volunteers—despite $1.6 million federal grant

As Morehouse President David Thomas noted: “Up until this current grant, Morehouse was having to do this out of our own operating dollars.”

The Numbers Tell the Story

Georgia’s failure in context:

• 48,000+ inmates without access to education
• 38 bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2023—for the entire state prison system
• 44 states are expanding prison education after Pell Grant restoration
• Georgia is cutting programs while other states expand

The Vera Institute estimates 750,000 incarcerated people nationwide are academically ready for college programs. Georgia locks them out.

What Success Looks Like

Programs that work exist—just not in Georgia:

• Bard Prison Initiative — 4% recidivism vs. 40% nationally
• Project Rebound — 65% graduation rate, higher than general students
• Inside-Out program — 5% reoffending rate vs. 76.6% nationally

Georgia knows what works. It chooses not to fund it.

Take Action

Use Impact Justice AI to send advocacy emails demanding prison education funding. The free tool crafts personalized messages to Georgia lawmakers—no experience required.

Demand:

• Dedicated funding for prison education in state budget
• Partnerships between Georgia universities and prisons
• Restoration of cut programs
• Access to Pell Grants for eligible inmates

Further Reading

• How Prison Education Lowers Recidivism Costs
• $700 Million More—And Nothing to Show for It
• GPS Informational Resources
• Pathways to Success

About Georgia Prisoners’ Speak (GPS)

Georgia Prisoners’ Speak (GPS) is a nonprofit investigative newsroom built in partnership with incarcerated reporters, families, advocates, and data analysts. Operating independently from the Georgia Department of Corrections, GPS documents the truth the state refuses to acknowledge: extreme violence, fatal medical neglect, gang-controlled dorms, collapsed staffing, fraudulent reporting practices, and unconstitutional conditions across Georgia’s prisons.

Through confidential reporting channels, secure communication, evidence verification, public-records requests, legislative research, and professional investigative standards, GPS provides the transparency the system lacks. Our mission is to expose abuses, protect incarcerated people, support families, and push Georgia toward meaningful reform based on human rights, evidence, and public accountability.

Every article is part of a larger fight — to end the silence, reveal the truth, and demand justice.

1. GPS Statistics, https://gps.press/gdc-statistics/[↩]