Cisco Networking Academy Program Uses IT Skills to Help Integrate Prison Inmates into Society
March 12, 2007
By Jason Deign, News@Cisco
A pilot program connected to the Cisco Networking Academy® Program in Europe is giving prison inmates a new route to reintegration into society.
More than 1000 prison inmates in the UK have passed through the Prisons ICT Academy Program (PICTA) in the last five years, obtaining IT skills to help them rehabilitate and find jobs upon release.
Alan (not his real name) is one such prisoner who was facing an uncertain future in a prison in the south of England just two years ago. But now he is looking forward to a new life and is set to complete an IT degree at Plymouth University thanks to a PICTA project.
"Without this experience I would not have known my potential. It has given me a completely fresh perspective on my life and my future," he says.
The main objective is to provide inmates with the same learning environment that they would receive commercially through an interactive, 'hands-on' experience.
Now 23 prisons in the UK use the latest technology to offer opportunities that lead to commercial, vocational and academic qualifications.
For Gary White, one of Alan's instructors at Her Majesty's Prison (HMP) Lewes in the south of England, the PICTA program is really changing the lives and prospects of former offenders.
"I think it is the best thing that has happened in the prison service, to be honest," he says.
"It is working. Guys who have been written off as un-teachable are benefiting from it and loving it."
His colleague Mike Billett agrees, adding that PICTA helps to prepare inmates for the outside world: "An example is that prisoners from the main part of the prison work and study alongside vulnerable prisoners.
"Under normal circumstances these two categories of prisoner may not have any contact with each other."
Employment prospects for ex-prisoners will improve still further if plans to bring potential employers into contact with the PICTA students come to fruition, enabling business people to see participants as skilled, capable men, not just offenders.
HMP Swaleside, on England's east coast Isle of Sheppey, is a Category B prison with longer-term inmates, many of whom are serving life sentences.
Bob Barrett, one of three Swaleside Networking Academy program course instructors, believes that the PICTA project offers students a chance to acquire more than valuable IT skills: "A lot of the guys here left school at 14 without any qualifications and just entered a life of crime.
"By the time they get to us, this might be all the experience they have had. You will see guys who have never spoken a word to each other suddenly collaborating to solve a networking problem. It is not just computing skills they are getting. It is life skills, too."
John (not his real name) is studying for CCNP® certification at Swaleside and believes that the project can change people's lives: "I wish I had known about this program outside. I don't think I would have been in prison now if I had."
John is scheduled for parole in December 2006, with the chance to look for work in September. According to him, the scheme represents a new chance in life. "Before I came here I had nothing. I did not really have any qualifications. Now I am leaving with CCNP."
Prisoners are eligible for the program if they are willing to commit to the necessary assessments and study. Courses are modular and individuals can mix and match components to suit their interests.
Besides basic courses such as IT Essentials I and II, or CCNA®, students can acquire the European Computer Driving Licence (a Europe-wide qualification demonstrating competence in computer skills), plus experience in team-working, writing a CV and interview techniques.
Gary White believes the program is so successful that: "All education should be PICTA-led: mathematics, English, anything."
Cisco is actively involved in the project, from the initial selection process to helping prepare successful graduates gain work experience, employment or further study on release through initiatives such as the Cisco Career Connection program.
Jane Lewis, PICTA program manager and Cisco area academy manager for the UK, says the project has had a real effect on improving prospects for prisoners.
"Some prisoners have been given the insight into the sorts of jobs they can get once they are out of prison. What is more, they do not have to work for someone else; they could start their own business."
Lewis says that more prisons in the UK are keen to join the project if government funding becomes available. She adds that the success of PICTA in the UK has inspired similar projects in other European countries.
Italy is planning to add more prisons to this project after running a successful pilot in a Milan prison since 2002. Germany opened its first academy in a young offenders' prison in 2005, although the curriculum is currently available in English and French only.
And Hungary will increase the number of academies from the existing two to three, subject to negotiations, while Portugal is set to join the program soon.
Jason Deign is a freelance journalist located in Barcelona, Spain.
