JANUARY 2-5, 2020

Poverty: An Interactive Case Study

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Gregory B. Fairchild, PhD

Associate Dean for Washington, D.C.
Area Initiatives and Academic Director of Public Policy and Entrepreneurship
Isidore Horween Research Associate Professor of Business Administration
Darden School of Business
University of Virginia

Prisons and Poverty

In a Forum session dedicated to understand solutions to poverty, Dr. Gregory Fairchild described the linkage between incarceration and poverty. Setting the stage for an interactive case study exercise, Dr. Fairchild reminded the Forum that, currently, 6.8 million people are in the US justice system, and corrections spending is in the top 5 line items of every State budget. In fact, in Virginia, the annual cost for incarcerating one person is greater than the tuition for the University of Virginia.

Each year, 626,000 people leave jail and re-enter society. Unfortunately, 77% will return to prison within 5 years. One of the primary factors influencing recidivism is the inability to find a job. And annual earnings after incarceration are significantly lower than comparable workers. The effects of incarceration also are intergenerational.

• When fathers are incarcerated, family income drops by 22%

• During incarceration, families become more dependent on government assistance

• Two-thirds of families with an incarcerated parent report income, food, and housing insecurity associated with homelessness

• Left-behind parents cite child care needs as a challenge in job market

The Case Study

Forum participants were presented with a Case Study based on an inmate’s letter to a University President and broke into groups to debate the pros and cons of recommendations designed to address the prisoner’s letter, which said:

“I will soon be released from my second incarceration. I am the father of two pre-teen boys. I want to be the father I haven’t been. I am wondering whether you can help me get the education I need.”

Group Reports

Two groups were assigned the “Pro” position, presenting arguments why the University should develop a program to help educate prisoners, how it could be achieved and who would be partners in the project, and two groups were assigned the “Con” position, and asked to suggest alternatives.

The PRO Position

Proponents pointed out that such programs could reduce recidivism, reduce costs, break the cycle of generational poverty, and increase workforce participation. They recommended pilot programs to gather data so that programs are evidence-based, and stressed the role of industry to identify needed job skills. The person’s history, experience, aptitude and length of sentence must also be taken into account, as well as the kind of crime committed, and any licensing barriers for specific trades.  Further, they suggested that post-prison, wrap-around services such as healthcare and housing support would add stability.

The CON Position

The groups assigned to the CON position pointed out that many existing programs are already providing similar educational services, such as community colleges and online education. These alternatives could be better integrated and utilized. They also raised the issues of the victim’s perspective as well as preferential access to college education for felons, when other applicants are turned down. They raised considerations about risks to the University’s reputation, putting alumni dollars in jeopardy if they disapprove of the effort, and veering from the University’s mission.

The Reveal

While Forum participants thought the prisoner’s letter presented an unlikely scenario, in fact, the Case Study was based on an actual letter received by the University of Virginia’s President and handed to Dr. Fairchild for response. Based on the belief that, “People can change, and educational institutions can make a big difference in the success of their futures,” and with initial funding from a University of Virginia faculty endowment program and help from Darden faculty and MBA students, Dr. Fairchild described “Resilience Education,” the program he, along with his wife and colleagues, founded to teach prisoners entrepreneurship skills.

The goal of the program is to provide inmates with business skills so that when they get out of jail, they can stay out of jail. This is a great opportunity for effective workforce development. The focus is on business skills to get into the job market, but also on understanding the business models and entrepreneurial skills underlying a successful welding, auto repair shop, or other business. Funding for the program comes from Foundations and non-profit entities, as well as from State funding and Pell grants.

Outcomes of the Resilience Education Programs

People in prisons need advocates who believe in them and skills to help them reconnect with jobs, family, and the community. Resilience graduates leave prison ready to activate their lives, tackle challenges, and build careers. After 8 years of classes in state, federal, juvenile, women’s, and re-entry facilities, the Program has more than 200 business professionals and MBA students serving as volunteer instructors, and among our 500 graduates, 93% stay out of prison. The program has expanded to New York with participation from Columbia University.

Furthermore, our MBA volunteers and our program graduates may go on to be community and business leaders and find ways to be more inclusive of those who have paid their debt to society.

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Break out groups debated strategies for providing entrepreneurship programs to inmates.

Discussion

Sen. Paul Gazelka (MN): Do you also teach the soft skills that are needed in business and provide mentoring after release from prison?

Dr. Fairchild: There is an online network of Resilience graduates and 400 MBA students from the program who continue to provide support such as resume writing, preparation for interviews, and housing, as well as connecting people with jobs. The University also hires some program graduates.

Sen. Rodrick Bray (IN): What is your success rate? Are graduates starting businesses? Is their recidivism rate lower? What are the program’s funding sources?

Dr. Fairchild: 93% of our graduates do not go back to prison. Most of them simply need/want a job, rather than starting their own businesses. But they are equipped to succeed in their jobs.

Sen. Drew Perkins (WY): Do prisoners use this knowledge to create successful criminal enterprises?

Dr. Fairchild: This has not happened, in part, because we have strict criteria to get into and stay in the program. Participants are screened by the wardens, the management team, and counselors. They can have no gang affiliations and any infraction of the rules leads to immediate dismissal from the program.

Sen. Greg Treat (OK): Have you gotten any negative feedback on providing cheap college for offenders? What are the costs of the program?

Dr. Fairchild: The major costs of a college education are salaries for the professors and maintenance of college buildings. In contrast, by using prison facilities and MBA student volunteers, who each teach about 700 hours per year, we keep costs for this program to a minimum.

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Kathryn Gunter (Entertainment Software Association) reports her group's findings on entrepreneurship training in prisons.

Speaker Biography

Gregory B. Fairchild, PhD  

Gregory B. Fairchild of the Darden School of Business at University of Virginia is Associate Dean for Washington, D.C., Area Initiatives and Academic Director of Public Policy and Entrepreneurship; and Isidore Horween Research Associate Professor of Business Administration. He is an expert in business strategy, business ethics, leadership and entrepreneurship. Fairchild specializes in underserved, overlooked markets and has taught financial literacy to victims of domestic violence, and has launched a program to teach entrepreneurship and business skills to inmates re-entering society.

Fairchild was named one of the 10 Best Business School Professors in the World by CNNMoney/Fortune in 2012 and one of the 50 Best Business School Professors by Poets & Quants. He was the lead investigator in a study of business models and public policy issues in the field of community development finance, an initiative supported by a $850,000 grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.