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The Reentry Project. Jail High School
 Jail
High School is the story of two teenagers working toward their high
school diplomas while they await trial for armed robbery. Both volunteered
to continue their education at York Alternative High School, a Chicago
Public School that is inside the Cook County Jail.Dominitric Mikel was never interested in school before his arrest.
But when he started going to school in jail, all of that changed. He
found that it was a surprisingly good place to get an education - the
teachers seemed more dedicated than the ones at his old public school
in Chicago.
DeLoyal Kershaw is atypical of students at the jail in that he has
a solid educational background. He was an honor student at a private
school before he decided to drop out. Now this school has allowed him
to pick up where he left off - he completed his GED, and he's
working toward his high school diploma.
Dominitric and DeLoyal are both in Ms. Horwick's class. Her classroom
is a refuge from all of the violence and negativity that the kids encounter
in jail. She allows her students to listen to music and to dance. She
knows how to tap into their interests - she has been introducing
poetry to the kids who like to rap. Mrs. Horwick also integrates horticulture
into everything she teaches. She recognizes that many of her students
have not grown up around grass and trees, and she feels that this is
an opportunity for them to learn how to nurture and love.
But there are many distractions to their education here. It is hard
for these kids to divert their attention away from their court cases,
and many of them are facing charges that carry lengthy sentences. They
also have to deal with the day-to-day stress of life in jail. When they
are not in class, the students live on what is known as a "school
deck"; but the kids like to call them the "gladiator decks",
because they say they can be so violent.
The school has allowed Dominitric and DeLoyal to escape this environment,
and both are starting to thrive. DeLoyal has almost enough credits to
graduate, and he has started tutoring some of the students who are struggling.
It has helped him realize that he likes working with people, and that
he might want to become a social worker someday. Dominitric, meanwhile,
is starting to consider college. He is studying for the ACT, and with
the help of a social worker, he has been applying for scholarships.
But both of these students face uncertain futures.
Dominitric can only use a college scholarship if he can get out of
jail. He recently rejected a plea bargain that would have sent him to
prison for several years. But if he is convicted of armed robbery he
could stay locked up until he is in his late 40's.
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