It’s hard to put into words all that this course has meant to me. I have met brilliant, compassionate people, I’ve had the chance to engage deeply and honestly with difficult issues like mass incarceration, racism, and other systems of oppression, and the range of perspectives and level of respect and care in discussions are something I’ve never had in any other college course.... In this class we cultivated a space where we could be our best selves. I hope to use the memory of that space to be more aware and honest moving forward... I take with me a more deeply rooted desire for social justice, as well as a better sense of how it might be worked towards.... I learned that I want to be bolder in working for change, that I have work to do.
Outside Student
I never got to do anything like this on the outside. This program gave me a reason to ... open up with people. Before this class I just spent my days waiting to die.... This program made me want to live again.
Inside Student
[What I will take forward from this course into my life] is perspective. What it means to be a part of something bigger than yourself... To go out and check the facts yourself. To meet someone yourself. To validate and credit those who are discredited by society. To listen instead of speak... I want use this memory the next time I consider skipping a social action. The next time I attempt to distance myself from the plight of another. I take my memories forward wherever I go.... I learned that I don’t have to get it right the first time. That sometimes I need to get it wrong in order to look sufficiently outside of myself to get a better answer.
Outside Student
Over a 92-day period, we spent 13 classes together that brought us roughly 30 hours of interaction. Those 30 hours that I shared with the other 36 people in the classroom have done more for me personally in self-growth, in reconnecting and relating to others, and in preparing me to rejoin society one day than anything provided by the state in the other 203,592 hours I have been imprisoned so far.
Inside Student
This course has been a powerful experience... [I]t has allowed me to open up and think more creatively. It built a community of respect and encouragement while also taking risks and leaning into creative spaces I normally would have shied away from.... The feeling of community and power, of community building for hope and better futures will stay with me.... I learned to have more faith in myself and my abilities and I was inspired by the Fayette [students].
Outside Student
This course has meant more to me than I think I can possibly say....It allowed to me feel normal in a sense that has not occurred in years. It has lit a fire and desire in me to continue on this path and gain all the knowledge I can and showed me that others are willing to help.... It has changed part of how I look at Social Justice.
Inside Student
It's hard to put into words all that this course has meant to me. I have met brilliant, compassionate people, I've had the chance to engage deeply and honestly with issues like mass incarceration, racism, and other systems of oppression, and the range of perspectives and level of respect and care in discussions are something I've never had in any other college course...
Outside Student
This course helped me to view people from different races, different backgrounds, in a better light... Now I want to go to school and value education more than I ever had before.
Inside Student
It was my most influential college course. It stirred my engagement and I recommend anyone who is interested in social justice to take part.
Outside Student
[I learned] to be more open to new ideas and experiences. I'm proud of myself for the first time in over a decade. I now feel like this is only a drop in the bucket I have yet to fill!
Inside Student
Inside-Out is a life-changing class. Had I not taken this course, I likely would have never gained the useful perspectives on the criminal justice system that my classmates have provided. In my four years at Pitt, I have never experienced a class that is more immersive into its subject matter or more real in its substance.
Outside Student
The Inside-Out program has given us the ability to look forward to something greater than ourselves…. I would like to personally thank all of the administration who looked past the color of our clothing and believed that we could still make a contribution, with more than just our physical labor. I look at all the faces in this room and I see a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. I see humanity as it was meant to be. All of us of one accord trying to achieve the common goal of becoming better than the day before.
Inside Student
This program reminds people of the humanity that exists within prison walls, the genuine and authentic people trying to find their way, just like everyone else.
Outside Student
Inside-Out is by far the most human and free you can feel while incarcerated. It has been a shining beacon that has shown me that there are people who will look past my inmate number and see the man that I am.
Inside Student
