Prison sentence opened academic journey of PhD candidate
LONDON, United Kingdom.(News of the South)-Ex-convict Stephen Akpabio-Klementowski speaks on how he went from being a prisoner, to an Open University (OU) student and now Open University member of staff supporting the Students in Secure Environments team.
Akpabio-Klementowski was in jail serving a 16 year sentence for importing class A drugs when he began studying for his BSc in Social Science with The OU.
Stephen went on to call his decision to begin studying his “seminal moment” in life.
He said he remembered receiving his course materials and being completely absorbed by them.
“The books, assignments and study calendar which set-out my program of study all contributed to a feeling that finally, I was doing something positive with my life,” he said.
“My experience of the education system outside had been negative. In my wildest dreams, I never expected that I was capable of going to university.”
At the moment he is studying for his PhD in criminology while working part-time as Regional Manager for The OU’s Students in a Secure Learning Environment.
His role involves managing the university’s relationship with prisons and secure hospital units in the South, South-West and parts of East of England.
He is grateful to the institution for widening access and participation to higher education, which in his case means facilitating the successful reintegration of prisoners back into society.
Comments
About Author
