BreakFree Education

by BreakFree Education

Highlights and stories of student success inside juvenile justice facilities. At BreakFree Education, we believe that all children have the right to learn, grow, and dream, so our mission is to radically improve education in the juvenile and criminal justice systems.

Podcast episodes

  • Season 1

  • Voices of Words Unlocked 2021

    Voices of Words Unlocked 2021

    In this episode we’re joined by poet Sha’Condria "iCon" Sibley and Christopher, a winning student from our 2021 Words Unlocked contest. Words Unlocked is a nationwide poetry initiative and contest sponsored by BreakFree Education during National poetry month in April for students in juvenile justice facilities. Music from this episode was created by students and staff at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Los Angeles in 2016.

  • Episode 6: Calling People In, Not Out With Sharnette Sims

    Episode 6: Calling People In, Not Out With Sharnette Sims

    Sharnette Sims, Principal of the Consuela B. York High School, located inside the Cook County adult jail, offers some terrific tips on leadership, including how she ‘calls people in’ instead of ‘calling people out.’

  • Episode 5: Small Steps Make A Big Difference with Eden Nelson, Scott Schult, and Elissa Flores

    Episode 5: Small Steps Make A Big Difference with Eden Nelson, Scott Schult, and Elissa Flores

    A group of tech-educators share what it takes to get the internet up and running inside of youth facilities, and ensure the technology gets used to make school engaging and meaningful, not simply as a tech-based substitute for packets.

  • Episode 4: Progress Through Intentionality with Henderson Lewis

    Episode 4: Progress Through Intentionality with Henderson Lewis

    Henderson Lewis, outgoing Superintendent of New Orleans Public Schools, talks about how he sees his work in New Orleans–and ensuring that students held in detention get a quality education–as a part of the larger civil rights struggle.

  • Episode 3: Education As a Superpower With Students from a Juvenile Facility in MO

    Episode 3: Education As a Superpower With Students from a Juvenile Facility in MO

    A group of students from a juvenile facility in Missouri remind us how important it is to offer them choice, to trust in them, and see them as capable.