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An innovative education program that brings together university criminology students and those serving prison time is among the finalists for Universities Australia’s Shaping Australia awards.
Introduced a decade ago by Associate Professor in Criminology Marietta Martinovic, the Inside Out program has expanded to seven prisons across Victoria with over 1000 participants who complete courses to build self-esteem and critical thinking skills, and motivate them to complete further education that could lead to employment.
The Inside Out program is a finalist in the Future Builder award, which celebrates an individual or a team who has gone above and beyond to equip their students with the skills to make a positive impact. It is one of three award categories.
“The Inside Out program is a unique experience for both the incarcerated students as well as university students as they get to learn together as equals in a really unique way,” Dr Martinovic said.
“There are six prison-based (prison and community) Think Tanks which I lead in Victoria, and upon release, people who have been incarcerated can continue doing advocacy work outside of prison in the community, and that is through the Beyond the Stone Walls Advisory Collective.”
Other finalists for the Future Builder award include Australian Catholic University’s Step Up into Teaching program which allows students to complete two education units during their school holidays for university credit and helping them secure conditional early entry into a teaching degree.
Monash University’s Activism for Academic Freedom is a third-year arts unit with Scholars at Risk – an international advocacy network of institutions which aims to protect scholars – to design and run real-world campaigns for imprisoned academics.
“They gain an understanding of academic freedom as a social good, and an appreciation that the rights and freedoms we enjoy can’t be taken for granted,” assistant lecturer Tony Williams said.
Researchers from Flinders University have qualified for their innovative defence programs, including an Engineering Degree Apprenticeship that allows students to work while studying, Australia’s first undergraduate nuclear engineering major with the University of Rhode Island, and defence industry co-designed diplomas and microcredentials. Another finalist, the Affiliated Schools Program, is a collaboration between the University of Canberra and the ACT government to redefine teacher education. It connects academics and educators with pre-service teachers and students to build capacity, strengthen professional practice, and improve learning outcomes.