NYU PEP, DE-CRUIT Make Advances for Incarcerated Individuals

The NYU Steinhardt initiatives recognize higher learning as a transformative tool for personal growth and social mobility.

NYU Steinhardt has long demonstrated a strong commitment to expanding access to education and support for people directly affected by the criminal justice system. Recent expansions in initiatives like NYU Prison Education Program (NYU PEP) and DE-CRUIT are lowering barriers to academic opportunity and actively championing incarcerated individuals as they find meaningful pathways to empowerment.

DE-CRUIT Expands to West Coast

Originally begun by US Army veteran Stephan Wolfert, DE-CRUIT is a trauma treatment program that helps veterans manage their mental health through Shakespeare and psychophysiological therapy. DE-CRUIT’s techniques have proved effective, with data showing significant decreases in PTSD and depression, as well as increased self-efficacy.

To improve on this success, DE-CRUIT has expanded its impact by adapting the model for use with veterans who are or have recently been incarcerated. DE-CRUIT partners with the Veterans Transition Center (VTC) in Marin, California, to run its programming throughout the year in local prisons. They also provide on-site programming through a residential program for veterans who have nowhere to go after being released.

A performer stands, holding a piece of paper, getting feedback from an instructor while a small, seated group observes — A DE-CRUIT workshop

“Veterans are overrepresented in the US prison system, and going from one trauma-infused environment into another can really compromise their ability to function,” says Alisha Ali, associate professor in NYU Steinhardt’s Department of Applied Psychology and lead scientist and co-founder of DE-CRUIT. “Over the past decade, some prisons have developed units in which everyone—from those incarcerated to the corrections officers—are ex-military. California’s prison system is especially beneficial for our implementation of DE-CRUIT because of the partnership with the VTC.”

After multiple weeks of working together on everything from breath control to classical acting techniques, DE-CRUIT culminates with each veteran performing a Shakespearean monologue—which often revolves around themes of war, conflict, and other universal themes—as well as a personal trauma monologue they have written.

“DE-CRUIT is a lifeline,” says Thomas Lamphere, the VTC’s Peer Specialist and liaison to DE-CRUIT. “It gives voice to the voiceless and meaning to the pain that too often defines a veteran’s life after service. I’ve seen it repair connections between people who thought they were beyond saving.”

“We are beginning to see the positive effects of DE-CRUIT in California as inmates apply for parole,” says Ali. “They need to demonstrate that they’re taking advantage of resources to help them understand their own actions and adapt to life outside without violence, and DE-CRUIT helps them with both aspects.”

This work is funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, DE-CRUIT’s second from the organization.

NYU PEP Offers Bachelor’s Pathways, More Financial Support

NYU Prison Education Program (NYU PEP) is a multi-partner, cross-university program that offers free college courses to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students at New York’s Wallkill Correctional Facility. Since 2015, 300 incarcerated people have earned transferable NYU credits through NYU PEP, with many obtaining their Associate of Arts (AA) in Liberal Studies while still incarcerated. Students are also offered support to continue their education at NYU’s Washington Square campus upon release.

Now, NYU PEP is piloting and expanding a set of bachelor’s degree pathways for students so they can access even higher-level courses while still inside. In addition, thanks to several generous donations, NYU PEP will now offer tuition and scholarships for all students.

“Many college-in-prison programs pick a single degree and that’s the only option, which isn’t reflective of the talents or interests of the community,” says Shabnam Javdani, associate professor of applied psychology at NYU Steinhardt and NYU PEP’s faculty director. “We are working with Wallkill to decide what terminal degrees would be of most interest to them and their many goals.”

Our full scholarship and living stipend support for formerly incarcerated students is a completely unprecedented arrangement in the field of higher education in prison.

Associate Professor of Applied Psychology, Shabnam Javdani

Javdani and Kaitlin Noss, executive director of NYU PEP, are building partnerships across the NYU landscape—including at NYU Steinhardt, the College of Arts and Science, NYU Gallatin, and more—so that when students return home, they can choose a major that supports their goals.

“Our full scholarship and living stipend support for formerly incarcerated students is a completely unprecedented arrangement in the field of higher education in prison,” says Noss. “This expansion will be huge for our students and for the NYU community that will benefit from their presence. In addition, this move by NYU PEP is a call to the universities and the field in general to think about what more we can do to expand access to education for currently or formerly incarcerated people.”

Helping Veterans Heal

Associate Professor Alisha Ali uses research-based evaluation to understand and improve the efficacy of a NYC-based trauma treatment program for veterans to re-conceptualize their world through Shakespeare’s verse.

NYU Prison Education Program Celebrates Graduation of 18 Students

This cross-university program offers free college courses to incarcerated students and helps them complete their NYU degree after release.

Keeping Girls Out of the Prison Pipeline

Associate Professor of Applied Psychology Shabnam Javdani’s ROSES supports young, system-involved girls through community-based advocacy.

Verbatim Performance Lab Supports Prison Arts Initiative Theatre Project

In June 2020 the NYU Steinhardt Verbatim Performance Lab (VPL) entered a collaboration with the University of Denver Prison Arts Initiative (DU PAI) at the invitation of Education Theatre alumna Ashley Hamilton.