Incarcerated Exchange for Change writers in exchange classes engage in a written dialog with students taking classes offered in three different departments at UM in addition to students taking classes at three other academic institutions. Both groups of students (those inside and outside of prison) are assigned common texts and prompts, and their respective teachers coordinate anonymous exchanges of written responses. Following that initial exchange, these students engage in a dialog comprised of multiple rounds of letters, sometimes with the intermittent introduction of new shared material. 

Students from UM who have partnered with E4C develop citizenship skills as they learn about the human dimension behind the ideas and ideals of social justice. They develop empathy and learn to see their incarcerated partners as more than the crime they committed. Even students who arrived in class with previous interest in criminal justice express amazement at their visceral realization of their writing partners’ humanity. These UM students often continue to advocate against mass incarceration and for criminal justice reform long after our time together has ended, and several have reoriented their educations and even careers around social justice. 

The best thing about the writing exchanges is their reciprocity. In the words of one incarcerated woman (writing under a pseudonym), “I’m always so excited to come to class to receive my letter from you. Your words are encouraging, and correspondence with you gives me a sense of worthiness. It makes me feel important, responsible, and adequate” (“Cherry Pie,” March 2016). Another woman from the same class echoed these thoughts in her final letter to her UM partner: “I took this class because the idea of writing to another human being, an intellectual human being appealed to me. Just the thought of having something … to look forward to each week compelled me to step out of my comfort zone and commit” (“Eskimo”). A third writer addressed the redemption she found in the exchange: After acknowledging that “Prison can ruin people” and disclosing how prejudiced her thinking had become, she wrote, “I am thankful for this class because my eyes are opening to a lot of defaults that I don’t want to have. And if I’m going to change my ways for the better I really need to start now while I’m here” (“M&M”).

In addition to these regularly offered exchanges with E4C, UM’s partnership with E4C provides E4C with teachers, workshop leaders, and board members. The UM Writing Center additionally funds two tutoring positions at Dade Correctional Institution. In full collaboration with UM, E4C can enact the power of written partnerships to promote dialogue and effect social change.