Vivian Nixon has long believed that expanding access to quality education is essential in the effort to end mass incarceration. As executive director of College & Community Fellowship, a Ford grantee, she helps women with criminal histories gain access to higher education.

---

You spent three and a half years in prison when you were a young woman. What did you envision for your future after being released?

I had a lot of shame about going to prison, a deep-rooted shame. And I needed to do something where I felt I accomplished something positive that my family could be proud of, that my friends could be proud of, that I could be proud of.

I had a very strong desire to get a college education. Most of the services that were being provided to women leaving prison were grounded in low-wage jobs or substance abuse treatment—services that people absolutely need—but College & Community Fellowship was the only organization I was able to find that focused on access to higher education and all the benefits that come with that. I joined the organization as a student, and by 2006 I had risen up to become the executive director, after graduating with a degree in nonprofit management.

---

How does the organization provide support for formerly incarcerated women?

We started out just mentoring and tutoring women who were in college. We’ve grown now to include many more services that give women a full and well-rounded experience in higher education.

Our advocacy and policy work help our women become politically active and engaged. We do monthly community meetings, which are opportunities for social networking. We work on financial literacy so women understand how to manage what they have and how to move past survival and toward prosperity. We work on home ownership. All these issues may not ever have been talked about in their households. It’s just a marvelous organization that is built upon the strengths of the people we serve and not just their deficiencies and needs. We believe that as much love, support, and nurturance we can give could never be too much.

How can your services benefit the whole family and community—rather than just the individual?

What we’ve seen with the women we’ve worked with and their children is that when their children grow up, they write essays about doing their homework with their mom while she’s doing her homework. They go on to college and become a part of a community where education is important and achievable. It is accessible. It is not some dream way out there.

There are private institutions that support our program because they believe that providing education leads to public safety, but, even more than that, it leads to public good. It’s one thing just to be safe and say, “Well this person is now stable, so it’s less likely they’re going to commit a crime.” It’s another thing when you look at what people do with their lives when they get an education, and the good is multiplied over and over and over again. The return on investment doesn’t end with that generation. It is passed on to generations in the future.

---

Can you tell me about a win that you’re particularly proud of?

In 2016, after a three-year campaign, we finally got the State University of New York to take the question “Have you ever been convicted of a felony?” off of their application. We know of colleges where if someone checked the box that they had a felony, those applications go to the security department for a decision—not to an educator. We don’t think that’s a good solution. We think people should be evaluated on their merits.

There are so many difficult and sensitive issues in the work you do. Can you point to an issue that is easy to solve?

I think the easiest issue to solve is the way we think about the people we’re serving. Rather than having this transactional relationship with them, a checklist of things they need to become before they’re acceptable to society, let’s have a transformational relationship. And that’s why I believe education is important. Because education is not a transaction. It is a transformational process.

What does equality mean to you?

To me, an equitable society is one that sees, values, and vigorously pursues the inclusion of all people so that they can thrive in community with one another.