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Brenda
Murray
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Brenda
Murray
70
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Chevy Chase
,
MD
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“Change isn’t dependent on money; it’s a question of will and tenacity. I believe that women in prison, and their families beyond, matter.”
Judge Brenda Murray understood early on that if you improve the life of a woman, you transform the lives of her children, grandchildren, extended family and community as well. For the past 20 years, Brenda has been transforming conditions and providing educational opportunities for thousands of women behind bars.
The effort officially began in 2006 when, as co-chair of the Women in Prison Project sponsored by the National Association of Women Judges, Judge Murray sent an e-mail asking Baltimore and Washington, D.C., area professors to participate in a prison book club. About a dozen professors responded, in the process becoming educated about criminal justice issues and becoming ambassadors for the incarcerated women. With no money and a small volunteer army of academics and correction officials, Judge Murray ultimately created a college program in Maryland’s only women’s prison.
When incarcerated people lost their eligibility for Pell Grants in 1994, the vast majority of college degree programs in prison ended. Since then, little has been done to equip those incarcerated with the necessary tools – education, career counseling and placement services – to successfully re-enter society. In Maryland, there is very little in the way of post-secondary education, despite compelling evidence that an investment in higher education is the most effective way to reduce re-incarceration and crimes rates, lessen the taxpayers’ burdens, make prisons safer and more manageable, and create better transitions for convicted felons to become productive and valued members of the community.
Although most college degree programs in prison have ended, Judge Murray continues to directly impact the lives of virtually all 900 women in the prison, by infusing hope, respect and trust into the culture of the institution and by empowering the women to educate themselves. She is known as a direct and plain-spoken federal judge who practices tough love with selflessness and sympathy. That’s why Judge Murray is a 2009 Woman of Worth.
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"I believe that women in prison, and their families beyond, matter."
Hear Brenda discuss her work
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ORGANIZATION
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MCIW College Degree Program, Inc.
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PO Box 26231
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Baltimore, 21210
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