Commencement 2022 - Staff and Graduates

In partnership with the Michigan Department of Corrections, MCC offers students at the Thumb Correctional Facility in Lapeer an opportunity to earn college credits toward an Associate of Arts with a concentration in Business Management or an Associate of Arts with a concentration in Social Work. Students pursuing the AA in Social Work can also complete the Substance Abuse Services Certificate of Achievement, which fulfills the educational portion of the requirements for Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) credential through the Michigan Certification Board for Addiction Professionals (MCBAP).

While some students may be paroled while pursuing their degree, students can complete their degrees as returning citizens, either through Mott or by transferring their credits to another college.

Classes are taught face-to-face or remotely through the use of laptops and video lectures. Our SCP students have traditionally excelled in their course work. Many earn a place on the Dean’s List and graduate with honors based on their academic success.

0 Degrees and Certificates

58 students earn a total of 73 degrees & certificates

  • 56 associate degrees
  • 17 certificates of achievement
0 Graduates Earning Honors and Higher

Academic success: 98.6% of the graduates have earned Honors and higher:

  • 13 earned Honors (3.0 - 3.499 GPA)
  • 52 earned High Honors (3.5 - 3.99 GPA)
  • 7 earned Highest Honors (4.0 GPA)

Mission:

Our mission is to provide a pathway to rehabilitation through education, mentorship and personal growth. Our goal is to encourage better outcomes for returning citizens upon their reentry to society by fostering a culture of compassion and lifelong learning, thereby reducing the rate of recidivism and improving their quality of life.

History:

This program was initially started as the Second Chance Pell Program, but as of July 2023 the federal government has restored the ability for all incarcerated students to apply for Pell grants. The U.S. Department of Education’s Second Chance Pell (SCP) Experimental Site Initiative was created in 2015 and expanded further in 2020, allowing incarcerated students to use Federal Pell Grants at 130 colleges in 42 states and the District of Columbia. Mott Community College was approved to partner with the Thumb Correctional Facility in 2016, and began classes in spring of 2017.

Commencement 2022 - Graduates

Eligibility:

In order to be eligible for the MCC-HEP program, prospective students must meet the following requirements:

  • Have a GED/High School Diploma
  • Satisfactory scores on Mott placement tests
  • Earliest Release Date between 30 months and 8 years
  • 6 months Class I misconduct free
  • Level I or II custody
  • Not in default of a student loan or financial support to cover tuition and fees
  • Agreement to enroll in assigned courses
  • Not enrolled in other Core Programming that will interfere with college

Next Step to Enrolling:

Interested recruits should contact the school office at their facility and request a College Recruitment Form. Once completed, the form should be returned to the school office. Recruits will be screened by the MDOC and placed on a waitlist to be considered for the next possible cohort.

Donate:

Support the MCC-HEP program with your generous donation! While Pell grants cover tuition and fees most of the time, there are circumstances when students need additional funding, such as:

  1. Credit/contact hour totals that exceed Pell awards (i.e., a credit/contact hour totals of 4-5, 7-8, 10-11, or 13+ hours).
  2. Balances that exceed Pell awards due to the cost of textbooks and materials fees.
  3. Students who are eligible for partial Pell awards that don’t cover their balance.
  4. Dependent students who do not receive tuition support from their family.
  5. Students who are ineligible for Pell grants due to SAP issues may receive funding to increase their GPA in order to reinstate Pell eligibility.

Please be sure to designate your gift to the “Prison Education Program Gap Fund”

Donate Online to the Prison Education Program Gap Fund