Women’s Voices: An Appreciative Inquiry of Off

Using an appreciative inquiry method, this study explored the experiences of women who participated in off-site postsecondary correctional education (PSCE). Semistructured interviews were conducted with four women who participated in study release, a program in which women who are incarcerated are permitted to leave the prison facility on a daily basis in order to attend postsecondary education courses at a nearby university or community college. Findings indicate one unifying theme among study participants: the restoration of one’s humanity through participation in PSCE. Connected to this unifying theme are two subthemes: (1) restoration of self and (2) restoration of connection and community. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed, including involving women and women’s voices in advocacy efforts to shape correctional policy from a punitive to restorative approach, offering choice of study in PSCE, providing PSCE opportunities that are off-site, fostering connections among PSCE participants and those who support them, and considering measures beyond recidivism to measure PSCE success. Limitations and suggestions for future research are addressed