2023

Amanda joined Southside Virginia Community College as the Campus Within Walls Coordinator in January 2023. She brings with her a plethora of knowledge about the Virginia Department of Corrections where she held positions as a Business Educator in juvenile and adult corrections. She has also held positions in adult corrections as an Assistant Principal and as a Principal. Prior to corrections she worked as a Business Educator for Cumberland County Public Schools. 

Amanda holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Longwood University and a Master's in Education in Teaching and Learning from Liberty University.

Currently, Amanda works with Baskerville Correctional Center, Lunenburg Correctional Center, Nottoway Correctional Center, State Farm Correctional Center, and the Virginia Correctional Center for Women offering college classes through Southside Virginia

Community College. 

In Amanda's free time she loves to travel to places abroad and in the US.

Lunenburg Correctional Center has had a longstanding collaboration with Southside Virginia Community College.

A dream of former SVCC President, Dr. John Cavan, The CAMPUS WITHIN WALLS dormitory that opened at Lunenburg in early 2011 houses college students and teaching assistants. The nationally recognized program has approximately forty actively enrolled students. Southside Virginia Community College (SVCC) offers three college level programs to the offender population. 

Associate Degree Program – Offers college courses through Southside Virginia Community College that are tailored towards an Associate in Arts & Science degree.

Information Technology Certificate – The information systems technology certificate programs

introduces students to several IT sectors such as hardware, software, and networking and repair/troubleshooting. Students that complete this course will be eligible to take the COMP TIA A+

Certification Exam.

Concurrent Enrollment Program – Students enrolled in the Masonry Program may take masonry for college credit during their enrollment period.

Nationwide, almost 7 out of every 10 incarcerated people are rearrested within three years of their release from prison.

SVCC Inmate Education program launched.

95% of people in prison will eventually be released.

5 corrections centers currently offering programs through SVCC.

6,000 incarcerated students served by SVCC.

SVCC Instructors teaching in Campus Within Walls.

Every $1 invested in prison education programs saves taxpayers between $4 and $5 in three-year reincarceration costs on average.

A 50-state study found that recidivism rates for incarcerated people who participated in prison postsecondary education programs are on average 46% lower than those who did not take college classes.

By Donna Levy, SVCC Kates Foundation Liaison

Since inception in 1942, The Elizabeth Kates Foundation helps women incarcerated in Virginia's Correctional Center for Women by providing education, vocational, and restorative programs to reduce recidivism. The Foundation is named for Elizabeth Kates, the founding warden of the facility who spent 20+ years looking to have appropriate programs for women as they prepare to rejoin and succeed in the community.

Among its many programs, The Elizabeth Kates Foundation showcases an importance for post-secondary education and will assist or pay full tuition and books for inmates in college classes through the community college. My role has been to find professors and classes that are relevant to learning and help the inmates succeed in classes.

Mission Statement:

The Elizabeth Kates Foundation helps women incarcerated in state prisons in Virginia by providing

education, vocational, and restorative programs to reduce recidivism.

Have you ever wondered if you missed an opportunity in youth? As an adult, have you ever wanted to learn something new? If your answer to either of these inquiries is “yes,” then you understand why I teach in the Campus Within Walls (CWW) program. Everyone has the right to education, though many of us fail to recognize the privilege of it when we are young and it is compulsory. Few of us are fortunate enough to regain what was lost to youthful negligence in adulthood, but the CWW provides the opportunity for offenders to earn a degree behind bars.

Students in the CWW program are eager learners and complete their work diligently and thoroughly. I have taught middle and high school, community college, and university classes and find the CWW program to be the most rewarding teaching experience of my career. While there is limited technology available in some institutions, it is a rewarding challenge to teach students without the assistance (or interference) of the technical advancements that are so prevalent in daily life outside of the carceral setting.

The CWW program brings together agencies and people from many avenues who toil together towards a common goal: the betterment of society. While it is not without its challenges, the result is a more knowledgeable, cooperative, and compassionate released offender who has a much lower chance of becoming part of the recidivism rate. Considering that s/he may be your neighbor, friend, or family, what could be more important?

Bryant E. Trihey

Assistant Professor of English and Humanities

Established in 1918, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society recognizes academic achievement of college students and provides opportunities for them to grow as scholars and leaders. Membership in the Society reflects discipline, determination, and an innate desire to succeed. Since its founding, Phi Theta Kappa has inducted more than 3.5 million members and chartered nearly 1,300 chapters in 11 nations. Membership is a great honor, and members are among the best of the best at their institutions. Congratulations to the following students for their recent induction into PTK.

Eddie Andrews

Thomas Harris

Tony Knox

Robin Walzon

Turner August

Troy Bird

Robert Hoyt

James Martinez finished his Associates Degree in General Studies at Baskerville Correctional Center through Southside Virginia Community College in May 2023. Mr. Martinez has worked very hard over the past couple of years completing his studies. His dedication towards his education and his ability to stay focused has enabled him to complete his degree with a GPA of 3.5. He was inducted into the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society at Southside Virginia Community College. Membership in the Society reflects discipline, determination, and an inmate's desire to succeed.

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