The Augustana Prison Education Program (APEP) has more than tripled in size since it began five years ago, with 36 students pursuing bachelor’s degrees this year. APEP is holding a trivia night fundraiser and silent auction on Friday, April 24th, to raise money for the program’s books and supplies.
“The funds are going to help APEP pay for our students' books and supplies because they don't have access to computers, and so they can't get their books online,” APEP Administrative Assistant Bonnie Jessee said in an interview with WVIK. “We have to purchase their books. We try to save money by purchasing used books, but then we also need supplies to replenish the supplies that they have.”
Jessee said the silent auction will consist of hotel, coffee shop, and spa gift cards, as well as homemade goods, including quilts and mosaic windows.
The fundraiser comes as the current class is finishing research projects and writing final papers. Ten students will graduate from the East Moline Correctional Center (EMCC), with an additional student who has since been released, receiving their diplomas during Augustana College’s commencement ceremony next month.
“We're really excited [to be] working with the prison,” Jessee said. “They're still allowing each graduate to have six guests, which we weren't sure if that would happen. It'll be very similar to last year, except there will be only one speaker. But we are giving each individual graduate an opportunity to say a couple [of] sentences to thank people that they want to thank.”
In an earlier story in December, Professor of Communication Studies and Executive Director of APEP, Dr. Sharon Varallo, told WVIK the degrees generally follow the same guidelines as course requirements at the main college, with over 40 faculty members now participating in the program.
“Folks from biology and classics to physics and communication and English and you name it, all over. So part of that has been intentional and it has to be because APEP is Augustana,” Varallo said in December. “And it's the same expectations for coursework. The general education requirements are the same. The language requirement is the same. So we have faculty from all over the college. And it's just a thrill to be able to open that door, to be that bridge into a prison system that is quite different than many people realize.”
Jessee said they hope to enroll 20 students this fall term, with the application currently open. Anyone incarcerated in Illinois can apply if their sentence allows them to transfer to EMCC, a minimum-security prison. The program is also looking to expand partnerships between the college and the prison.
“Dr. [Jason] Mann is going to be teaching a religion course, and we're still in the process of getting it approved, where eight students from Augustana would go into the prison and work alongside eight of our incarcerated students,” Jessee said. “We're hoping that'll happen. We're pretty excited for the opportunity to do that.”
Separately, a student club at Augustana has been active for a year now, assisting APEP and building relationships with incarcerated Americans.
Olivia Fleming is the founder and president of the Student Prison Education Club and a junior at Augustana College.
“There are about 40 members in our group chat, at least. All have a varying level of involvement,” Fleming said in an interview with WVIK. “And the purpose of our club is to support APEP in any way we can, whether it's organizing fundraisers or even participating in a pen pal. It's to provide connections between the prison population and students who have been wanting to get involved but don't know how.”
Fleming said the club is partnering with Companions Journeying Together, a nonprofit “designed to build healthy relationships and foster positive communication,” according to its website. That partnership involves ten students.
“[I]t was one of the reasons why I started this club was to get students to participate in this pen pal [program], along with increasing involvement with APEP,” Fleming said.
The trivia night and silent auction start at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 24th. Tables of 8 can be reserved for $100 or $15 per person. It’ll be held in the Wallenberg Hall, 2nd floor of Denkmann on Augustana’s campus. The event will also feature concessions. The signup sheet can be found here.
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