Correctional studies involve educational initiatives designed to prepare inmates for life outside of prison. Research suggests that the provision of educational opportunities to inmates stimulates creativity and provides a mean to overcome poverty and violence. These programs are usually provided and managed by onsite educational officials; however, Shalette East, a doctoral candidate in NSU’s Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences, has partnered with the Turks and Caicos Department of Education to provide educational services to inmates in that country’s penal system through the Caribbean Virtual Academy (CEVA). She credits the development of CEVA to the knowledge obtained from the practical approach to the courses she pursued as a doctoral student at NSU’s Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences. CEVA is approved and supported by numerous educators and educational institutions in the Caribbean.
CEVA is an online school serving Caribbean students in primary and secondary school. CEVA is a perfect alternative to traditional, classroom-based learning. The courses facilitate learning at home, on the road, or wherever an Internet connection can be found. All CEVA students have access to a wide array of e-textbooks, e-handouts, videos, educational games, thousands of practice questions, topic-specific notes and tests, study guides, animated notes, pre-tests and post-tests. In addition to access to test preparation materials, CEVA students participate in online class discussions and live tutorials facilitated by Caribbean tutors. In addition to core primary school subjects, CEVA affords students the opportunity to prepare for all high school and pre-college examinations.