Inside-Out Pathway-to-BA
Pitzer College’s pioneering bachelor of arts degree program in which currently incarcerated individuals learn alongside Claremont Colleges students
“The Pitzer Inside-Out Pathway-to-BA is at the heart of Pitzer College’s educational objectives and core values, particularly social and racial justice, social responsibility, and the ethical implications of knowledge and action.”
Melvin L. Oliver
Pitzer College President, 2016-2022
Pitzer is the first undergraduate institution in the U.S. to transform Inside-Out curriculum into a program that leads to a BA for incarcerated learners.
Read the StoryAbout
Pitzer College’s Inside-Out Pathway-to-BA is based on the Inside-Out curriculum model, developed by Professor Lori Pompa at Temple University. “Inside” students at Norco’s California Rehabilitation Center (CRC) and “outside” students from The Claremont Colleges learn side by side, gathering in the same classroom to take a course taught by a Claremont Colleges professor.
Pitzer’s Inside-Out classes were initiated at the CRC in 2014. Its Inside-Out Pathway-to-BA was launched in December 2020, making it the first college in the country to transform Inside-Out curriculum into a BA degree program for incarcerated learners.
Pitzer’s Inside-Out Pathway-to-BA is part of the Justice Education Center at the Claremont Colleges and was developed in partnership with the CRC and Norco College.
Program Outcomes
- Increase of obtaining meaningful post-release work
- A 93% lower chance of recidivism
- Successful re-entry into society upon release
Inside Student Voices
“We can interact with the professors and the students, and in doing so, we are given a sense of self-worth and humanity.”
Damian Busby ’22
Inside-Out student
Organizational Studies major
Graduate in Focus
Kenneth Butler
Kenneth Butler ’22, who pursued his Pitzer degree through Inside-Out courses while incarcerated in a medium-security prison, was awarded a 2022–23 Fulbright US Student Program grant.
Read Kenneth's StoryView the Launch
More Inside-Out Alumni Stories
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Professor Nigel Boyle
Inside-Out-Pathway-to-BA Program Director