Female Prisoners, AIDS, and Peer Programs: How Female Offenders Transform Their Lives

Kimberly Collica

Sep 2012 · Springer Science & Business Media

About this ebook

​ ​This book highlights a neglected area in the field of rehabilitation of female offenders with AIDS. It provides data to show how women, working as HIV peer educators in prison, utilize their peer experiences as a transition point for rehabilitation both inside and outside of the penitentiary. HIV and prison are inextricably linked and education has proved to be the one constant that mitigates the spread of both HIV and crime. Research on female inmates in general is not frequent and this book presents unique qualitative data that includes rich accounts from the women themselves. It illustrates the benefits derived by female inmates who work in an HIV prison-based peer program, while adding to the criminology literature on female patterns of criminality and rehabilitation. It provides a greater understanding of how prison programs affect the processes of criminal desistance and behavioral changes for female inmates. Women involved in such programming are able to change the criminal trajectory of their life direction. contributing to reduced levels of recidivism and institutional disciplinary infractions. The implications for these programs is relevant within the broader perspective of women, HIV and incarceration. ​

About the author

Dr. Kimberly Collica is a Professor of the Justice Studies Department at Berkeley College. Prior to teaching, Dr. Collica worked in a women's correctional facility in New York State coordinating an HIV prison-based peer education program and for the Westchester County Department of Correction supervising their jail-based transitional services unit. She has extensive experience working with correctional populations and has over ten years of teaching and training experience in this area. Dr. Collica serves as a TOT (Train the Trainers) for the NYS Department of Health/AIDS Institute and has been responsible for training professionals in HIV- related issues in the NYS Metropolitan area. Dr. Collica has a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York, a M.Phil from the Graduate School and University Center, a MA in Criminal Justice from John Jay College, and a BA in Criminology from John Jay College. Her research has focused on female inmates, rehabilitation, reintegration, and issues surrounding HIV prison-based peer programming.