Grand Valley State University offers educational programs at Bellamy Creek Correctional Facility designed to give prisoners the opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree free of cost. As a student studying criminal justice, I am surprised and confused as to why the University hasn’t been advertising this educational initiative.

Prior to my knowledge about this program, I constantly heard the comparison between schools and prisons as both having strict schedules, restricted freedom due to rules in place and food not being the best. There is even a humorous joke at GVSU that some freshmen dorms were previously designed to be prison cells. While the comparison has always been interesting to me, there was never a clear connection between schools and prisons until I learned about this program.  

Bellamy Creek is a prison located in Ionia, Michigan that houses prisoners ranging from Level 1 to Level 4. The levels are determined by how secure the facility needs to be in managing inmates. Bellamy Creek encompasses a wide range of criminals, including those who may have a violent history and others who have committed low-level offenses. This means the prison can act as a maximum security location, which is typically above Level 3. However, as a Level 1 facility, Bellamy Creek can also act as a minimum security prison, which allows inmates at that level much more freedom in their day-to-day routines.

GVSU was reportedly supposed to start an educational program at Bellamy Creek at the start of the Fall 2024 semester. The no-cost, five-year program was designed to offer a bachelor’s degree in public and nonprofit administration. According to a Flickr post from the Michigan Department of Corrections, Bellamy Creek held a Convocation Ceremony on Aug. 22 for 20 prisoners accepted into the program. However, GVSU has released no information about this, despite continually expressing the importance of providing access to education.

While there does seem to be a lack of information about this program from GVSU, according to a memo from the College of Education and Community Innovation (CECI), “The Prison Education Partnership (PEP) recently received a $120,000 grant from the Ascendium Education Group to jumpstart this ‘higher education in prison’ (HEP) program, which will eventually be supplemented by the reinstatement of Pell Grants to justice involved populations.” This allows for the prisoners at Bellamy Creek to have access to free education. 

I can’t help but think about the logistics of this program. As a student who pays a lot of money to attend this University, it is important to me that GVSU is more transparent about affiliated programs and how they go about funding them.

While the lack of details about the program is cause for question, I personally like this initiative. Receiving an education while in prison significantly helps inmates to adjust to society after being incarcerated. 

According to the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, getting a college education decreases the likelihood of recidivism by 14.8% and increases the likelihood of employment by 6.9%. Obtaining a degree helps prepare an individual for life after prison, rather than leaving them to readjust on their own.

You’d think GVSU would be proud to be part of such a program, considering the positive effects of providing prisoners with access to education. However, I’ve heard more about the University’s Lake + Valley Lemonade than this program. This is strange because there are many questions I have about the University’s involvement with Bellamy Creek, and I’m sure other students would as well.

I’d like to know what requirements are needed to be accepted into the program and where the funding comes from. I’d also like to be able to follow the associated progress. How can I do that if this information isn’t available anywhere, or being promoted? Regardless of whether you agree with GVSU’s expedition into prison education, I think we can all agree that transparency is important and it’s something that has been lacking from the affiliation with this program.