Brandeis Educational Justice Initiative
The Brandeis Educational Justice Initiative (BEJI) works to expand the educational access of people impacted by the criminal justice system, and to increase the Brandeis community's awareness and knowledge about mass incarceration. We partner with community organizations, prisons, jails, pre-release centers, youth facilities, and diversionary programs across the Boston area. In these partnerships, we provide academic courses, creative workshops, tutoring, and mentoring. Our partners offer us unique opportunities for professional development and curricular innovation. Together, we affirm the role of higher education in promoting equity in our shared world.
This emerging initiative is an expression of Brandeis University’s foundational commitments to inclusive democracy and civic engagement. We are faculty, students, and staff from many sectors of the university, collaborating to help Brandeis address the systemic injustices of mass incarceration, and at the same time educate ourselves about the many ways in which mass incarceration impacts people and communities.
This initiative contributes to a vigorous nationwide movement among colleges and universities to create educational opportunities for people impacted by the criminal justice system. Our academic institutions offer crucial resources for repairing the social harm of increasing inequity. All members of the Brandeis community are welcome to participate in this initiative.