The Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention, the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, and Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services announced the expansion of its tablet program.
According to the Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention, the tablet program correlates with the inmate education system. It provides them access to apps and tools that help with their learning process with the GED and TABE tests.
“Expanding the program to additional facilities will enhance DLLR’s correctional education program and change the lives of hundreds of inmates who need access to technology to be successful in their future jobs. Implementing this technology in our correctional education program prepares students for their next steps, and reduces the recidivism rate in Maryland,” said Labor Secretary Kelly M. Schulz.
The devices are said to also aid in reducing the smuggling of the narcotic Suboxone, which is often brought into jails through paper which officials say fuels prison violence.
The state hopes to purchase 47 additional tablets to be used in Adult Basic Education classes in a wide range of facilities.
The program will cost $50,000 and is funded by GOCCP and DLLR. The GOCCP will also contribute an additional $25,000 grant for the new tablet with equal funding from the Department of Labor.
“We view this as an important crime prevention strategy,” said Executive Director V. Glenn Fueston, Jr. of the Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention. “Not only will the tablets prepare students for the future, it also shows them that we have faith in them outside the walls of the criminal justice system. This state investment is money wisely spent.”
