Heather Erwin

Hello All! I look forward to participating in this seminar and learning from everyone.

I am the Assistant Director for the UI Liberal Arts Beyond Bars (UI LABB) college in prison program, where we offer classes to incarcerated students at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center (IMCC).  Rhetoric Professor Jennifer Stone teaches RHET:1030 to our students, and this is the first year we will have dedicated TAs specifically for Dr. Stone's class.

I also work as a Senior Advisor for the DC-based policy organization, Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP). My work for IHEP consists of practice-based research into what makes a quality Higher Ed in Prison Program.  Before coming to IHEP I worked as a Program Associate for the Vera Institute of Justice, where I provided technical assistance and training to colleges and universities participating in the US Dept of Ed's Second Chance Pell Experimental Sites Initiative. This initiative allows Student Financial Aid to waive the restriction on Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated students so that they can enroll in college courses using Pell Grant funds.

I grew up in Iowa City, graduating from Iowa with an English undergrad major and a JD from the Iowa Law School.  I just submitted the second draft of my dissertation manuscript through my online EdD program at Northcentral University.  I hope to defend before the end of February (fingers crossed...). My husband owns Pop's BBQ in the old gas station on the corner of Market and Dubuque Streets, and we have three children, ages 18, 11, and nine.  My middle daughter, Harper, and I have read all of the Harry Potter and Rick Riordan books and are currently looking for the next great adventure series.

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