LBJ - Prison and Jail Innovation Lab

This year marks the Prison and Jail Innovation Lab’s 5^th year as a national policy resource center working to ensure the safe and humane treatment of people in custody and cultivating the next generation of justice policy leaders.

Based at The University of Texas at Austin’s LBJ School of Public Affairs and led by award-winning professor and director, Michele Deitch, and by associate director, Alycia Welch, PJIL serves as a bridge between academic research, practical experience, and policy. PJIL draws on the best available research to reduce harm inside prisons and jails, help transform facilities into safe and healthy places that respect human dignity, and reduce the need for incarceration.

With your support, PJIL will continue serving as a trusted resource for policymakers, the media, justice system practitioners, advocates, and corrections officials working to address some of the most pressing issues in corrections today:

1) Effective oversight of prisons and jails

2) Dehumanizing and dangerous conditions behind bars

3) Deaths in custody

What We’re Fundraising For

Funds raised through this year’s 40 for Forty campaign will support some of our core initiatives:

The Humanization Project

The Humanization Project works to change how people in custody are treated by documenting conditions of confinement and advancing practical, evidence-based reforms that improve safety, health, and dignity inside correctional facilities.

Rapid Response Initiative

Through our Rapid Response Initiative, PJIL quickly responds to requests from policymakers, practitioners, journalists, and advocates seeking timely and reliable information on prison and jail conditions, correctional oversight, and deaths in custody. Our team regularly briefs government officials, contributes expertise to legislative efforts, and helps bring greater public understanding to urgent issues in corrections.

The National Resource Center for Correctional Oversight (NRCCO)

PJIL operates the National Resource Center for Correctional Oversight (NRCCO), a national online clearinghouse that supports policymakers, advocates, and practitioners working to establish or strengthen oversight for prisons and jails. The NRCCO website—www.prisonoversight.org—is the go-to national resource for information on oversight bodies and best practices nationwide.

International Experts’ Network on Prison Oversight and Human Rights

PJIL’s Director and Associate Director serve as Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively, of this network, which operates under the auspices of the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA). Each year, we publish two editions of the “Prison Oversight and Human Rights Review,” a collection of articles by Network members, and two newsletters focused on developments in correctional oversight worldwide; organize panel discussions at international conferences; and offer webinars for a global audience.

Graduate Student Researchers

Donor support also enables PJIL to provide meaningful mentorship and paid research opportunities for graduate students in law and public policy who are committed to criminal justice reform, ensuring the next generation of leaders is equipped with both rigorous research skills and real-world policy experience.

Our Impact

Since launching, the generosity of PJIL’s supporters has allowed us to become a trusted national resource on prison and jail oversight and conditions. With philanthropic support, PJIL has:

• Provided guidance and expertise to hundreds of policymakers, public officials, advocates, and oversight practitioners seeking help on issues related to prison and jail conditions and correctional oversight.
• Produced major reports and other publications, several of which have received national media attention.
• Helped develop legislation establishing new prison and jail oversight bodies, including recent successful efforts in Arizona and Philadelphia.
• Partnered with corrections officials and advocates in Louisiana to develop meaningful jail standards.
• Advised government officials internationally—including in Uruguay and the United Kingdom—on improving prison systems, reducing incarceration, and strengthening oversight mechanisms.
• Testified before legislative committees, task forces, and commissions at both the state and national levels.
• Served as trusted experts in national media coverage on criminal and juvenile justice issues.
• Established the National Resource Center for Correctional Oversight (NRCCO), a national clearinghouse supporting policymakers, advocates, and practitioners working to establish or strengthen oversight systems across the country. Visit www.prisonoversight.org.
• Launched the Correctional Oversight Peer Learning Community for directors of statewide prison oversight bodies, creating the first forum of its kind where these leaders can share insights, strategies, and best practices with one another.
• Hosted major national conferences on prison and jail conditions and oversight, bringing together policymakers, corrections leaders, advocates, researchers, journalists, and people with lived experience to address urgent issues in corrections and oversight.
• Organized events for the UT community, including film screenings and panel discussions relating to what’s happening behind bars.

With your generous support, PJIL will continue this work in the coming year—responding to urgent policy needs, advancing high-impact research, and pushing for reforms that meaningfully improve conditions for people in custody and expand correctional oversight.

Supporting the Next Generation of Justice Policy Leaders

A central part of PJIL’s mission is preparing the next generation of justice policy leaders. With donor support, PJIL provides graduate student researchers at UT with unique experiential learning opportunities. Student researchers work directly with PJIL’s leadership on projects that influence policy debates and reform efforts across the country.

Through their work with PJIL, students have had the opportunity to:

• Research, co-author, and publish high-impact policy reports.
• Conduct national analyses of prison and jail oversight systems.
• Analyze data on deaths in custody and conditions of confinement.
• Engage with national leaders, policymakers, advocates, and oversight practitioners working to improve prison conditions.
• Participate in research projects addressing emerging issues such as aging behind bars, sleep in prison and jail, and natural deaths in custody.
• Help develop innovative initiatives, including a short documentary highlighting the impact of prison oversight around the country and how it is changing lives.

Support PJIL during 40 for Forty and help us ensure safer, more humane correctional systems!