Today, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a pilot project that will provide inmates in the Humboldt County Correctional Facility access to education on an electronic tablet platform. The focus of this project will be to maintain compliance with Title 15 section 1061, which requires the Humboldt County Jail to provide voluntary academic/vocational education of both sentenced and non-sentenced inmates. The pilot project will expand educational programs to the entire population of the facility and introduce additional educational content in the continued effort to aid with offender’s re-entry into the community and help reduce recidivism.
Jail Education Solutions, Inc., also known as Edovo, will contract with the county to provide the educational service, beginning with a 90-day pilot project in a section of the facility. No taxpayer dollars will be used for this project. The trial will cost about $12,000 for the leasing fees and infrastructure set-up, paid for out of the Sheriff’s Office Inmate Welfare Fund. This fund is generated from phone and commissary commissions and is required to be used for inmate benefit, such as educational programs.
Edovo is already established in county correctional facilities in Sacramento and Madera. Their vast educational content includes courses GED/High school equivalency, basic literacy, ESL, employment training and job skill development, health and wellness including substance abuse treatment, anger management, and cognitive behavior therapy. Edovo will also interface with College of the Redwoods to allow access to their curriculum as well, which will supplement the classes already being taught in the facility. These tablets will not be internet accessible and all the content is regulated and tracked by the correctional facility staff.
After the initial three months, the Sheriff’s Office will evaluate the program to determine if the educational would benefit the inmates and reduce recidivism in the community.
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