Collaboration & Planning
While higher education can at times be isolated or siloed, by contract, HEP programs require regular and consistent communication and collaboration. Faculty are asked to engage with one another and encouraged to collaborate on curriculum, and, when feasible, to co-teach. In addition, faculty must collaborate with staff at the correctional institution and maintain positive relationships for the good of the program and student experience.
Interdisciplinary collaboration
The VISTA program places a high value on interdisciplinary collaboration for the good of the program and student learning. The Holistic Learning project that created this toolkit is intentionally transdisciplinary. It is led by a Professor of Visual Studies (MFA) and includes faculty and scholars from Criminal Justice, School Psychology, Public Humanities, and Public Administration. This cross reference of approaches allows the team to cultivate student-centered experiences that support creative and critical thinking and both wellness and academic success.
Cultural responsiveness in pedagogy
Cultural responsiveness in higher education in prison involves recognizing and valuing the diverse lived experiences and perspectives that students bring into the classroom. Students in HEP programs come from a range of cultural and educational backgrounds, and their lived experiences, including incarceration, shape how they engage with learning. Classroom environments where students feel respected, heard, and able to contribute are critical in the HEP space. For some students, this may be the first time they are in a classroom where their lived experiences are reflected in course content or discussion. Faculty support students by selecting materials that reflect diverse voices, encouraging dialogue across perspectives, and making space for students to connect course content to their own experiences.
Faculty should also be mindful of how access to education, systems of inequality, and lived experiences may impact student engagement, and approach teaching with openness and a willingness to learn from students. Cultural responsiveness is an ongoing practice, but essential to building learning environments that are inclusive, meaningful, and academically rigorous.