In honor of Women’s History Month, we would like to take this opportunity to share our admiration for every woman who makes our organization thrive, including our MBA instructors, students, RPC members, and advocates. We're also proud to say that the Resilience Education team is majorly composed of women and led by our CEO, Tierney Fairchild.
History of Women in Prison
As we celebrate Women's History Month, we cannot ignore the alarming rates of incarceration among women in our country. Did you know that women are the fastest-growing population in U.S. prisons and jails? According to the Vera Institute of Justice, the number of women in prison has increased by over 700% since 1980 ("Women and the Criminal Justice System" by the Vera Institute of Justice). Moreover, women of color are disproportionately affected; Black and Native American women are incarcerated at rates nearly double that of White women.
Making up 10% of the total incarcerated population in the country, women’s institutions are rarely prioritized and often passed over for funding. As a result, incarcerated women are more likely to experience psychological distress, with less access to mental health resources and support. Additionally, about 8 in 10 incarcerated women are mothers, and most lack the post-release financial support and resources to secure the housing and employment necessary to support themselves and their children.
Women's History Month & Resilience Education
Resilience Education started teaching in our first women’s prison, Fluvanna, in 2013. This year, 25% of our incoming graduates and 52% of our MBA instructors are women. We have had the pleasure of working with many committed and resilient women, such as Allison, Cereatha, and Shawana, who we have celebrated in our past newsletters.
At Resilience Education, we believe that women are a powerful force for positive change in our society, and especially this month, we want to honor the resilience and strength of incarcerated women and their families.
The Resilience Education Mentoring Program is in its eighth week of Pilot 3. With 21 initial matches, this is our largest cohort yet, and we are thrilled to have so mentees with professional goals in higher education. On April 25, all mentoring matches will gather virtually for Group Presentation Day to showcase their progress and accomplishments!
We are also looking forward to our first in-person program graduations since 2019! And, we are getting ready to launch our third business school partnership.
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