How can you help?
PEP volunteers help by investing their time and sharing their personal experiences and knowledge. Volunteers expose in-custody students to substantive content that allows them to transform their lives. Each volunteer commits to one 60 or 90-minute session per week for seven weeks. Volunteers give presentations in groups in modules such as:
Academic Orientation, Life Skills, Creative Enrichment.
What is Prison Education?
Academic Orientation Module: Introduction to College, Introductory Courses in Math, Writing, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, Astronomy, and STEM Fields
Life Skills Module: Career Development, Soft Skills, Financial Literacy, Forgiveness & Healing, Building Healthy Relationships.
Creative Enrichment Module: Creative Writing, Creative Expression, Screenwriting, Film Studies, Music, Shakespeare, Yoga & Meditation, Modern Dance, Creative Expression, Mindfulness
There are three 7-Week PEP semesters during the year: Fall, Spring, Summer. There is a mandatory orientation session for new volunteers at the beginning of each PEP semester. See PEP Course Outlines. Approximately 25% of PEP courses are taught virtually via Zoom, which means that volunteers who reside outside of California can volunteer. PEP's Spring Semester courses are from February 21 to April 10. The mandatory Fall Semester Orientation will take place virtually on Sunday, August 23rd at 2:00 p.m. Register for the Fall session here.
PEP student volunteers are from various colleges including: USC, UC Irvine, Harvey Mudd College, Western University of Health Sciences, Claremont McKenna, San Diego State, Cal State San Bernardino, UC Davis, Sacramento State, Cal Poly Pomona, Pepperdine, Pitzer College, Cal State Los Angeles, UC Riverside, UCLA, University of Michigan, Cal State Fullerton, Pasadena City College.
