Community & Belonging

How does a HEP program cultivate belonging for students who are incarcerated?

HEP programs can create a more holistic educational experience for students who are incarcerated by building as seamless a connection as possible between the prison and main campus. Despite being separated by distance and literal bars, students in HEP are enrolled in the same academic programs as students on main campuses. Following are basic ways to support students’ sense of belonging:

• Remind students in classes and events that they are University students
• Share school folders and/or bags with the college or university mascot or logo
• Post signs or banners in classrooms with the HEP college or university name

Expanded view of belonging and holistic learning

Despite the institutional and geographic boundaries, the VISTA team brings the SDSU spirit and aims to create a boundaryless environment that centers first our shared identities as SDSU Aztecs and the community of scholarship associated with higher education. Messaging and approach across team members is consistent in ensuring VISTA students recognize their affiliation with SDSU as a student and more broadly as a member of the community.

Visits from community leaders and peers

“Being able to interact with people from different backgrounds and ethnicities helped me feel like I was part of the SDSU community.”

Over the course of the academic year, VISTA students meet with university and community leaders and peers from the greater San Diego community. These visits have included SDSU President Adela de la Torre, the local District Attorney in the Imperial Valley, coordinators and directors from Project Rebound, faculty guest speakers, leaders from the campus newspaper, and students from the main campus criminal justice program.

Students visiting for dialogue with HEP students

A unique opportunity for VISTA students to directly interact with main campus students is through a dialogue activity that occurs at the prison. At SDSU-VISTA, the annual dialogue event involves approximately 35 main campus students who travel to the prison and meet with VISTA students in each yard. The event is held in the gym, where circles of chairs are pre-staged and each circle contains both VISTA and main campus students. Each group of students is prepared with questions that center on the college education experience. Following the session, both main campus and VISTA students engage in debriefing and reflecting on what they learned.