Julie Little, a biology professor at Rappahannock Community College, speaks during the Digital Opportunity Summit in late October.
For many inmates inside Virginia’s correctional facilities, especially those incarcerated for more than five years, the world outside may seem incomprehensible. Online job applications, virtual interviews, remote gigs, e-commerce, and even self-checkout and online banking are intimidating new norms.
The Virginia Department of Corrections is addressing this concern by collaborating with various educational institutions and nonprofit organizations to expand online educational opportunities for incarcerated individuals. This effort is designed to equip those individuals with suitable skills necessary for successful reintegration into today’s technology-driven workforce upon release.
This initiative is a direct response to a 2024 Joint Legislative Audit & Review Commission report, “Virginia’s Correctional Education Programs,” which highlights technology’s growing role in reentry success.
The need is urgent. Roughly 80% of the 22,700 currently incarcerated will eventually return to society, according to VADOC, and a Prison Policy Initiative analysis estimates that 27% of formerly incarcerated people are unemployed due to a variety of historically exclusionary policies and practices. Digital illiteracy should not be one of them.
Bridging the Digital Divide
At an Oct. 31 Digital Opportunity Summit organized by the Virginia Consensus for Higher Education in Prison — a program of the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy — attendees got an inside look at some innovative partnerships and approaches to expand courses, close technology gaps in Virginia’s correctional facilities and ease the reentry process. Speakers such as VADOC Chief Information Officer Zacc Allen and Angela Lawhorne with the Virginia Community College System, among others, addressed the current challenges of internet speed, education waitlists and instructor-led learning.
For example, Allen noted the inefficient dial-up bandwidth speed and the unstable J-Pay and tablet software in many facilities. Julie Little, a biology professor at Rappahannock Community College, said that to enter a VADOC facility, “teachers can only carry in a driver’s license, a flash drive and a car key. No paper, pens, pencils or dry erase markers.”
Digital literacy and robust internet access can improve in-class instruction, but providing those amenities safely and securely to incarcerated individuals can be difficult. To address this, VADOC has increased investment in high-speed, secure online learning platforms. The agency is also adding courses on digital literacy, remote work skills and internet- based business to its facilities, including those in the most remote Southwest regions.
In addition, thanks to a 2021 Mellon Foundation grant, VADOC facilities have access to JSTOR online archives, allowing inmates access to scholarly journals and books regardless of whether they are formally enrolled in degree programs.
Data-Driven Reform
The JLARC report found that 40% of Virginia’s inmates have an assessed need for education to reduce their likelihood of reoffending. In 2024, the state recorded a three-year post-release recidivism rate of 17.6%, the lowest in the nation. Experts attribute the achievement to Virginia’s comprehensive educational programs and effective reentry initiatives.
Yet the JLARC report also highlighted gaps: In 2024, only 19% of released inmates participated in classes through the Adult Basic Education program, and 16% took Career and Technical Education courses. Part of this problem is wait-listing. In 2024, 623 inmates were released while on a CTE waitlist but never got to participate in those programs. By February 2025, over 3,000 inmates languished on a CTE waitlist for various trade courses.
Kelly Dara, a summit panelist, attested to the value of education in prison, noting how she earned her associate’s degree in 2015 while serving a 29-year sentence at Fluvanna Correctional. Home since February 2024, she is now taking classes remotely to earn her bachelor’s degree in media arts from Southern New Hampshire University. Remarking on how challenging it can be for many people to gain admission to college, she dryly pointed out, “Do you know how hard it is to be a released felon and still get into college?” She expects to graduate in 2028.
Zacc Allen (left), chief information officer of the Virginia Department of Corrections, looks on as Padhu Seshaiyer, professor of math sciences at George Mason University, speaks during the Digital Opportunity Summit.
Pathways to Employment
VADOC’s enhanced digital curriculum includes basics like emailing, online resume-building and cybersafety, as well as more advanced topics such as virtual job interviews, setting up online bank accounts and building an online freelance portfolio. Collaborations with two of Virginia’s four-year universities and local community colleges also provide postsecondary, or college-level courses within 14 of VADOC’s 37 prisons. These partnerships enable inmates to obtain credentials in advanced areas such as digital marketing and coding during their incarceration.
Virginia Consensus is partnering with the State Council of Higher Education and several nonprofits, including the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, Resilience Education, Unlocked Labs and Virginia Works, to continue to expand postsecondary programs. With these partners and ongoing reforms, the goal is not just to reduce recidivism but to empower released Virginians for full participation in the digital workforce, ensuring that the path home is not just about freedom, but about dignity, opportunity and self-sufficiency.
“We know that quality education programs lead to better and more meaningful employment opportunities,” Virginia Consensus Director Terri Erwin says. “And when formerly incarcerated people are connected to quality job pathways, it helps them achieve socioeconomic mobility and increases their capacity to support their families and contribute to their communities.”
