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Community groups and Outreach highlight GED progress, law‑library access and work‑release concerns
Summary
Outreach reported 16 enrolled in the prison GED program in December with positive pretest and test pass rates; public speakers raised problems with tablet access to law‑library materials, a too‑small TV in the chapel, voter registration efforts and ongoing efforts to restore work release.
Representatives from Outreach and community volunteers addressed the Lackawanna County Prison Board on Jan. 21 with progress reports and several public concerns.
Jennifer Shoemaker of Outreach said the GED program operated inside Lackawanna County Prison had 16 students enrolled in December. Outreach conducted 12 pretests in language arts in December (11 passed), and eight took the language‑arts test with five passes; classes run three days a week with in‑person instructors. Outreach is Pearson VUE registered and said LCP is registered as a test site. Shoemaker said Outreach can provide instruction across all housing blocks, including max units, and that dyslexia screening is being discussed with prison staff and outside academic volunteers. She said classroom space constrains growth and that Outreach can provide packets and individual testing when needed.
During public comment, Deb De Barrows of Scranton urged the board to replace a newly installed TV used in chapel programming, saying the replacement is substantially smaller than the prior unit and inadequate for groups of 20–25. De Barrows also raised concerns about access to the law library: she said a title by Isaac Wright Jr. is not appearing on inmate tablets despite prior representations, and she asked the administration to demonstrate tablet access at the next meeting. She also outlined voter registration plans inside the prison ahead of the May 19 primary (registration deadline May 4) and urged better post‑release transportation assistance after recounting a recent case of a newly released woman lacking a coat and transit help.
Maggie Craig, who runs a weekly women’s writing class, thanked the warden for resources, urged the board to prioritize review of a solitary confinement report by Dan Demuth and read a poem by an incarcerated participant calling for education and reform rather than prolonged detention.
Board officials indicated they are pursuing work‑release options with an outside agency and an advisory group and will follow up with the public speaker about possible sites and outreach partners.
