Welcome! If you’re a 5C (Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, Pomona, or Scripps) student, you can find ways to participate in the Justice Education Initiative regardless of your major. We encourage students of all backgrounds and areas of study to explore the various academic and experiential opportunities that JEI sponsors, and to check out the criteria for receiving JEI funding for justice system-related events and community work.

Keep an eye out for the forthcoming Justice Education Studies major and minor: an interdisciplinary, intercollegiate collaboration that we hope will be fully realized by 2023, and which will allow students to incorporate pathbreaking theoretical and pragmatic work on justice-related issues into their courses of study.

For all JEI updates, subscribe to our mailing list here, and follow us on social media!

Academic Opportunities

Take an Inside-Out Course

See current and past Inside-Out course offerings here.

Inside-Out courses form the core curriculum both of the forthcoming Justice Education Studies major and minor, and of our inaugural in-prison BA pathway for currently incarcerated students. 5C student participation in these courses is contingent upon instructor approval, and entails a semester-long course taken in a carceral setting, with equal numbers of campus-based and currently incarcerated students. The unique dialogue-based methodology of these courses makes them not only incredibly generative, but often profoundly transformative as well.

Enrollment in Inside-Outside classes for the fall 2021 semester is currently open. We will also be offering a number of classes in spring of 2022, and we encourage you to subscribe to our mailing list for updates, and to keep our past and current course offerings in mind when registering for classes in the future. Interested students must register for Inside-Out classes according to the normal registration process within the deadlines given by the college offering the course. Instructors will contact registered students directly with further instructions about the application and interview process.

Experiential Opportunities

Intern or Volunteer with One of JEI’s Partner Organizations

Design or help facilitate a class with the Prison Education Project, co-lead college preparation and career development courses with the Reintegration Academy, or volunteer to lead meditation and emotional process work or organic gardening workshops with Insight Garden Program. Check out this page to learn more about the organizations we partner with, and to get involved with their work! JEI offers up to $200 stipends for students who intern or volunteer with our partner organizations, out of gratitude for and recognition of the work and time you’re putting into uplifting our shared community. See “Funding Opportunities” below to learn more about the stipend application process.

Do Justice-Related Work in Your Community with JEI Support

Do you already do justice-related work in your community? Are you interested in starting an organization yourself, or in hosting a justice-related speaker or event on your campus? Just as we do for students who volunteer with our partner organizations, and out of the same gratitude and recognition, JEI also offers up to $200 stipends for those doing justice-related work in other capacities and with other organizations. See “Funding Opportunities” below to learn more about the stipend application process.

Take JEI Abroad

The Justice Education Initiative and the Prison Education Project have a close partnership that opens up possibilities for students to participate in overseas educational programming in carceral facilities in Uganda and Scotland. Due to the existing situation with COVID-19, overseas in-person programming has temporarily been suspended. But PEP continues to teach courses online, and once travel conditions improve, we hope to expand available opportunities for 5C students to develop theoretical and pragmatic understandings of justice system work in an international context.

Funding Support

The Justice Education Initiative offers financial support for justice education-related events sponsored by faculty, staff, and student organizations at The Claremont Colleges, which may include but are not limited to: conferences, lectures, invited speakers, community engagement and art initiatives in addition to course development awards, faculty development opportunities, student-sponsored event awards, and more.

Funding categories:

• Funding support for costs related to ongoing programs already being implemented in prison settings (i.e., workshops, faculty forums, tutoring, mentoring, literacy training, guest presentations, etc.) primarily at CRC, CIW, Camp AP, Prototypes, and Crossroads.
• Funding support for activities on campus that support the aims of the Justice Education Initiative. Funds could be used to defray costs for activities such as guest speakers, field trips, film showings, social gatherings, etc.

To request Justice Education Initiative funding, email justice_education@pitzer.edu for the application. Grant-funded awardees will be required to complete event/program evaluation forms at the close of the event, see final paragraph for details.

Application instructions:

• The deadline for requests under $200 are rolling; any request over $200 should be submitted per cycle deadlines for 2021-22 for priority consideration: April 1, 2021 (for Fall 2021 or Spring 2022), and November 1, 2021 (for Spring 2022). You should allow a minimum of two weeks to receive a response following submission of this form.
• Priority will be given to events that are open to the entire Claremont Colleges community and those that also reach beyond campus to community organizations, formerly incarcerated communities, etc.
• Priority will be given to activities that align with the aims of the Justice Education Initiative.
• Successful applicants will be notified by email indicating the approved amount and procedures for paying honoraria and requesting reimbursements.
• Requests are considered on a case-by-case basis and are subject to available funds.
• Grant administration queries can be addressed to justice_education@pitzer.edu

For approved requests, here are a few requirements and helpful guidelines:

• Flyers, posters, and/or emails publicizing the event must include “Justice Education Initiative at the Claremont Colleges” as one of the sponsors.
• An electronic copy of the flyer/email being used to publicize the event must be sent to justice_education@pitzer.edu
• If the reimbursement of honoraria, consulting, and/or provided services is to be fully covered by Justice Education, a W9 or invoice for services must be completed and submitted for payment.
• If the Justice Education Initiative is paying for materials, please submit receipts totaling at least the approved amount. An account number and payee name must be provided for processing the reimbursement.
• If you are part of an existing campus entity (such as a student club, program department, etc.), please provide your campus account number.

Grant-funded awardees are required both to

1. Fill out an event/program evaluation form themselves, and to
2. Have program/event participants complete one at the close of the event.

Awardees must complete and return all event evaluation forms within three (3) weeks of the event. Reimbursements will not be processed until event evaluation forms have been submitted.

Event/program evaluation form for stipend recipients.

Event/program evaluation form for event/program participants.