[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 58 (Wednesday, May 1, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4562-S4563]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            PRISON LITERACY

 Mr. SIMON. Mr President, you may remember that a few weeks 
ago, I had an amendment on the floor to restore funding to the prison 
literacy program. I hope that will stay in the final appropriations 
that we agree to.
  The need to do something on the question of illiteracy was emphasized 
in an editorial in the Chicago Tribune and by an excellent letter to 
the editor from George Ryan, the Secretary of State in Illinois who, 
I'm pleased to say, has been a leader in literacy efforts.
  I ask that the George Ryan letter be printed in the Congressional 
Record.
  The letter follows:

                           Learning in Prison

       Springfield.--The March 25 editorial titled ``The crime of 
     prison illiteracy'' correctly laid out the devastating 
     problem of low literarcy levels among prisoners in Illinois 
     and across the nation. Education is an

[[Page S4563]]

     important factor in keeping people out of jail and in 
     reducing the number of repeat offenders swelling our prisons.
       Boosting overall adult literacy levels has long been a goal 
     of mine. To this end, the secretary of state's office has 
     made a concerted effort to assist the Illinois Department of 
     Corrections and local law-enforcement officials in offering 
     literacy programs to as many inmates as possible.
       Over the last three years, my office has funded volunteer 
     literacy tutoring for 6,107 inmates. There are currently 
     volunteer programs in 22 state correctional facilities and 30 
     county and municipal jails.
       In 1995, 785 community volunteers and inmate/peer tutors 
     helped Illinois prisoners raise their reading levels. More 
     inmates can be helped to overcome their literacy 
     difficulties, however, if more volunteer tutors were 
     available. I urge the citizens of Illinois to donate a few 
     hours of their time to a local literacy program.
       In addition to these volunteer efforts, I have awarded a 
     $64,400 literacy grant to the Illinois Department of 
     Corrections School District 428 to fund reading programs at 
     the Dwight, Kankakee, Pontiac and Sheridan facilities and to 
     supplement literacy efforts at 13 other state correctional 
     centers. More than 430 inmates were served by these programs. 
     Test scores indicated that the reading levels of these 
     prisoners improved at a faster rate than the levels of other 
     adult literacy students.
       As the Tribune pointed out, education is not a panacea for 
     reducing recidivism. But it is a proven fact that raising the 
     reading skills of inmates helps make them productive members 
     of society after they serve their terms and reduces the 
     chances that they will commit another crime.
                                                   George H. Ryan,

     Secretary of State.

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