Frequently Asked Questions

How are Bending Bars and CEP connected? Where does Sensible School fit in?

Initiated in 2015, the Civics Education Program (CEP) is a four-course series covering classes in: civics, ethics, literature, and economics.  Each class is 12 weeks long and is offered inside the correctional facility.  We use the “Great Books” as our textbooks enabling our inmate students to explore and understand perennial ideas shaping human thought and behavior. 

Bending Bars is the public face of CEP showcasing the powerful effects of the program primarily through digital media outreach.  Bending Bars also hosts a podcast series which includes former inmates and those involved in transforming the narrative on criminal justice emphasizing the value of in-prison educational programs like CEP.

SensibleSchool™ provides credentialed courses to students who are not well-served by our existing educational institutions. It offers approved courses in social studies to high school students, adult education courses to adults in the workplace, and sponsors the Civics Education Program for inmates in prisons. SensibleSchool™ is sponsored by Certell, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity, headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.

How/Where is CEP delivered?   

Our program is delivered in hybrid format. Inmates read and study on their own, and then participate in in-person sessions  i.e. inside the correctional facility. These sessions are facilitated by active and retired university professors who are assisted by college students.  With the rise of technology in various prison education programs CEP’s courses are also available on tablets which are assigned to inmates by the Department of Corrections.  These e-tablets do not have access to the Internet and are designed for in-prison use only.  Currently, our program is offered at two facilities in South Florida and we will be launching the program in Central Indiana in the fall of 2021. 

Doesn’t this program give offer prisoners criminals special privileges not available to hard-working people who’ve never done anything wrong? Where’s the justice in that?

As a society, we are still deciding whether the purpose of prison is punishment, rehabilitation, or protecting society by locking up the anti-social. In reality, it is a bit of all three. Regardless of which you emphasize, however, we believe that every human has a right to develop their own capacity to become more fully human. CEP seeks to provide inmates with insights into how to live a virtuous life as individual and citizen. We do so partly to reduce recidivism, but even for those with no chance of release, we have a mission to teach good citizenship and the way to better living.

The question of access to great education for the law-abiding public is an important one. The solution is not to deny education to inmates, but rather to provide it for everyone else. The mission of SensibleSchool™ is to be that solution. We offer to the general public low-cost, high-quality education in civics and much more—at a price anyone can afford. To learn more, go to www.SensibleSchool.org.

What about the victims? 

The Civics Education Program stands fully on the side of every person who has been a victim of crime. Our purpose is not to reduce sentences or see that criminals get put out on the streets. Sympathy for victims is is what provides the impetus for us and our mission. We seek to reduce recidivism by increasingly the likelihood that those who are released understand what it means to be a responsible citizen. In other words, we are working to reduce the chances any one of us or our family members might become a victim to crime by cultivating responsible citizenship among the 95% of inmates who will return to our communities.

Why should I support or care about the Civics Education Program?

Safer Communities: With six years of experience in working directly with inmates, we can confidently say that many inmates have an enormous appetite for understanding the workings of a a free society. This starts during their incarceration but continues in their desire for success after returning into our communities as full citizens. Most come to the realization that through their criminal activities they exploited their victims and society. In other words, they confused liberty with licentiousness, overemphasized their rights, and neglected their duties. CEP teaches them to respect the rights of others. While this may not be sufficient to keep them from reoffending, it is a necessary step in the right direction.

Fiscal Savings: Bending Bars has contacted & interviewed 10 of our students who are back in society and are flourishing. On average, the State of Florida spends $20,000 to house an inmate each year. By not reoffending, these 10 CEP students are already saving Florida taxpayers $200,000 annually.

Productive Citizens: Inmates who return to our communities, reunite with their families, and find employment are on the path to become productive, taxpaying citizens rather than a burden to society. Thanks to the Civics Education Program our graduates have come to understand the dignity of the individual, realize the value of fundamental rights, and cherish the privilege of American citizenship.