First APEP student earns diploma
Augustana celebrated nearly 500 graduates in May at commencement, including David Staples — the college's first graduate to have benefited from the Augustana Prison Education Program (APEP).
Pioneered and led by Augustana Professor of Communication Studies Dr. Sharon Varallo, APEP serves incarcerated men at the East Moline Correctional Center (EMCC). Students can earn a four-year degree in communication studies or American studies, which draws upon American history, literature, politics and the arts. Classes are taught by Augustana faculty, and the curriculum mirrors the college's liberal arts focus.
Staples was a member of the 10-student inaugural APEP cohort in 2021. He received an early release in August 2022 after 29 years of imprisonment. He then continued his Augustana education, this time on campus, and declared a psychology major. His degree will bear no distinction regarding his APEP involvement.
"It's been a long road," Dr. Varallo said. "David decided not to let his wrongful conviction and incarceration tell the story of who he is. It is my honor to witness this commencement, to witness him soar. I’m thrilled to be cheering for David’s success now and into the future."
Staples is looking forward to graduate school, with hopes of working in counseling psychology. He will continue to work with the Illinois Innocence Project and his legal team in seeking exoneration.
A few Augustana students, including Annelisa Burns ‘22, have served as peer tutors for APEP students.
"When I walked out of EMCC, I told my friends that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life," Burns said. "I began thinking of ways that I could continue with this kind of work in grad school and continue working with APEP."
Burns did administrative work for APEP during the summer of 2022. In the fall, she drove in weekly from her seminary studies at Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago to co-teach an English course with Dr. Jacob Romaniello in the prison.
She also established the RWCInside, a satellite Reading/Writing Center at the EMCC campus.
"I've learned so much from everyone involved in APEP — from the dedicated faculty, to the inspirational students at EMCC, to my fellow peer tutors who also got to tutor in prison," Burns said. "It has been the greatest gift, truly."
APEP launched in the fall of 2021 with a $225,000 seed grant from the Austin E. Knowlton Foundation. In 2022, the foundation awarded APEP a $1 million grant and 10-year commitment. The sustaining grant provides APEP with $100,000 annually, allowing the program to serve more students with greater resources. This includes access to better library and technological resources and more guided research, as well as return-to-career-readiness programs.
In addition to the Knowlton grants, the program has garnered broad philanthropic support. This includes a $50,900 award from the Bard Prison Initiative for the installation of a computer lab and a $20,000 grant from the Regional Development Authority in Davenport, Iowa, to fund the hiring of an administrative assistant to serve as a liaison between APEP and Augustana offices, the EMCC, the Illinois Department of Corrections, and community services.
Additional support comes from individual donors. According to Dr. Varallo, the plan for APEP is to enroll 20 new students this fall for a total of up to 40 incarcerated students.
Research shows that graduates of prison education programs like APEP are less likely to return to prison after their release. Dr. Varallo says that for every dollar spent on college classes for incarcerated people, five dollars are saved in the cost to the community.
For more information about the program, visit augieprisoneducation.org.