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  2. Correctional Education

Correctional Education

Correctional education is a fundamental component of rehabilitative programming offered in juvenile justice facilities, most American prisons, and many jails and detention centers. A wide variety of administering entities operate correctional institutions in the United States, and a wide variety of organizations are the providers of onsite prison education programs. Various federal education programs have supported education in State and local prisons. 

In 1991, an Office of Correctional Education (OCE) was created by the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act, to coordinate and improve these efforts to support educational opportunities in correctional settings. The OCE function currently resides in the Office of Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE), Division of Adult Education and Literacy (DAEL). While OCE has a unique coordinating role for correctional education, other administrative units within the Department of Education support and oversee specific programs that are based in correctional facilities.

More information about correctional education is available on our Prison Education Programs and Resources pages.

Questions? Contact us at CorrectionalEducation@ed.gov.