Incarcerated Women Earn Northwestern Degrees

Eighteen women in Illinois prisons received bachelor's degrees from Northwestern University at a commencement ceremony in Kewanee.

Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Higher Education

Empty wooden folding chairs in a sunlit institutional hall, one black graduation cap on a seat, with flat prairie visible through tall windows. — Eighteen incarcerated women received Northwestern University bachelor's degrees at a commencement ceremony in Kewanee, Illinois, where Nancy Pelosi spoke. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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On Oct. 16, eighteen incarcerated women received Bachelor of Science degrees in general studies from Northwestern University at the Kewanee Life Skills Re-Entry Center. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivered the commencement address.

Why it matters

The graduates are described as the first incarcerated women in the United States to earn bachelor's degrees from a top 10 university, expanding access to higher education for people in custody across Illinois. Their completion of a five-year program offers a model for correctional education statewide.

The program completion count comprises 18 women who finished a five-year course of study that began in fall 2021, with the Kewanee ceremony site approximately 130 miles from Northwestern's Evanston campus. The data does not indicate how many students are currently enrolled or planned for future cohorts.

The players

Northwestern University

A private research university based in Evanston, Illinois, known for its strong academic programs and prison education initiative.

Nancy Pelosi

A former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives who delivered the commencement address at the ceremony.

The details

The women completed coursework through the Northwestern Prison Education Program, launched in 2018, with instruction from Northwestern faculty. Maria Garza, released from prison in 2021, returned to attend the ceremony, and Chelsea Raker's 12-year-old son was present.

2018: Northwestern Prison Education Program launched.
Fall 2021: The women began their studies.
Oct. 16: Commencement ceremony held and degrees conferred.

Lifestyle Context

The graduates completed a program that began under the Northwestern Prison Education Program in 2018, and their completion marks the first such bachelor's cohort from a top 10 university in the United States. The milestone builds on that program's expansion of college-level coursework to incarcerated students.

For prospective students in custody, the program shows that a bachelor's degree is attainable through a structured five-year course of study delivered inside correctional facilities. Families and advocates can use the program's documented timeline to evaluate similar opportunities at other institutions.

The takeaway

Access to college coursework can continue after release and inside prison walls, as the graduates' five-year path demonstrates. Readers interested in correctional education can track how similar programs are structured and funded.