Behind the Curtain: The Community Cost of Incarceration

press release: The prison population in Wisconsin is rising again and the state is deciding whether to build new prisons or send people to out-of-state facilities. In spite of over a BILLION dollars per year spent on corrections in Wisconsin, do you know how your tax dollars are being spent? It is hard to find out. Learn about the difference between jails and prisons, sentencing practices and available programming to the incarcerated. All these factors strongly impact individuals, families, communities and all of society.

Karen Reece is VP of Research and Education at Nehemiah Community Development Corporation. Dr. Reece does strategic planning and manages a continuous evaluation program to ensure quality control. She runs an annual public workshop series on the criminal justice system highlighting racial disparities, provides training on request throughout the community, and teaches a UW course on the Intersection of Health Care and Incarceration. Her diverse range of interests and skills span science, arts and community building.