From Prison Arts to Creative Futures: Saving Public Dollars by Reducing Incarceration and Recidivism

(Paperback)

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Discover the Transformational Power of Arts Programs in Prisonsand Beyond

Alma Robinson, a nationally recognized arts leader, first encountered the powerful effect of the arts on people who are incarcerated when she attended a performance of Twelfth Night presented by Marin Shakespeare Company at San Quentin State Prison (now San Quentin Rehabilitation Center). Inspired by men who were transformed through their work with the acting ensemble, she launched a successful journey to utilize new, evidence-based research to restore funding for arts programs in California prisons that was eventually expanded to many states across the country.

This book describes Robinson's journey from expanding prison arts programs to providing opportunities for people seeking sustainable careers after their release. Readers are invited to imagine how arts can lead the way to a more robust system of rehabilitation for our incarcerated populations that will result in less recidivism and greater public safety.

Author Bio

Alma Robinson is the Executive Director of California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA), where she oversees legal, education and alternative dispute resolution services, and leads a robust Arts-in-Corrections Initiative. California's stellar arts programs in prisons had been completely defunded in 2003. As a result of CLA's evidence-based demonstration projects, state funding was restored by 2016 to $8 million per year. While working with arts agencies in Texas, Louisiana, and New York to expand arts programs in their prisons and jails, Alma also launched Designing Creative Futures, a program that has placed 175 formerly incarcerated people in paid arts internships. A graduate of Middlebury College and Stanford Law School, she received the Michael Newton Award for collaborative leadership from Americans for the Arts in 2021.