September 30, 2025

A statement from GPEP Executive Director Ann Duncan

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced that the Maryland Correctional Institution – Jessup (MCIJ) will be closing by the end of June 2026. As these plans have emerged, the GPEP staff has been in close communication with DPSCS administration and is working with them to determine the implications for our operations.

30 September 2025

Dear GPEP community,

Yesterday, Governor Moore announced that the Maryland Correctional Institution – Jessup (MCIJ) will be closing by the end of June 2026. As these plans have emerged, the GPEP staff has been in close communication with DPSCS administration and is working with them to determine the implications for our operations. Our students remain our top priority, as does their continued access to high-quality in-person education. In the short term, we are hopeful we can finish the academic year as planned. In the long term DPSCS and Goucher College are both committed to continuing our important partnership and are exploring the possibility of relocating our operations and the students together.

The Goucher Prison Education Partnership has deep ties to MCIJ. In 2012, GPEP offered its first credit college courses to 15 students there. For the past 13 years, GPEP has expanded its work at MCIJ, now enrolling approximately 130 students at both MCIJ and the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women (MCIW). GPEP will continue its efforts to expand academic opportunities and reduce the time to degree for all students.

As a national leader in providing college in prison, we remain steadfast and dedicated to our mission to provide an excellent college education to students incarcerated in Maryland. With less than 40 programs nationally offering access to a bachelor’s degree to incarcerated students, this work remains vitally important.

We will continue to share updates as these plans evolve. Thank you for your ongoing support of GPEP and GPEP students.  

Ann Duncan

Executive Director

Goucher Prison Education Partnership