Sheriff''s Office And Conroe ISD Helping Inmate Students Graduate

CONROE, TX — The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and the Conroe Independent School District are working together to help students in the Montgomery County Jail get their high school diploma.

The program is aimed at helping those students who were enrolled in Conroe ISD or other surrounding districts, prior to their arrest, according to a press release from the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.

"Through partnerships with Conroe ISD we are able to eliminate barriers and do what we can to put youth back on track," Montgomery County Sheriff Rand Henderson said.

Studies show that only one in five students that drop out of high school re-enroll, so it is imperative the students stay on course while in jail.

The program, which is in its third year, allows teachers from Conroe ISD’s DAEP — Disciplinary Alternative Educational Program — to come to the Montgomery County Jail four days a week for tutoring and act as a liaison between the school campus and the incarcerated student.

The goal of the program is to encourage incarcerated students to continue with their academic schedule while they are behind bars, allowing them to successfully integrate back into the classroom when they are released from jail.

Since the program was implemented, DAEP teachers have had direct instruction time with more than 60 incarcerated high school students, with two of those students receiving their high school diploma while still in the Montgomery County Jail.

Many other students who've taken advantage of the program have returned to their home campus once released from jail. Currently, the program has nine participants.

"It is in the interest of the children and the community to help incarcerated youth build the skills they need to succeed in life and to become productive citizens," Henderson added.

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