Erin L Castro portrait
  • Co-Director/Founder, University of Utah Prison Education Project
  • Associate Dean, Access and Community Engagement, Undergraduate Studies
  • Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership&Policy
  • Associate Professor, Educational Leadership&Policy
801-585-1378
https://upep.utah.edu

Publications

  • Castro, E. L., Caradonna, C. & Gould, M. R. (2023). “I don’t Even know what that is”: Deprivation, censorship, and responsibility in administering the Pell Grant in prison. Journal of Student Financial Aid. Accepted, 11/01/2023.
  • Castro, E. L., Howard, M., Ferguson Mimms, L. & Zalinsky, R. (2024). Improving prison education programs: Experts discuss the expansion of Pell Grants for incarcerated students. Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings. Published, 02/13/2024.
    https://www.brookings.edu/articles/improving-priso...
  • Royer, C. E., Castro, E. L. & Aguilar Padilla, E. (2023). Harassment, discouragement, and intimidation of college students in prison: A qualitative study on the prevalence of disciplinary power in prison higher education. Harvard Educational Review. Accepted, 01/11/2023.
  • Castro, E. L., Aguilar Padilla, E., Royer, C. E. & Bahr, H. (2023). Criminal history questions in undergraduate admissions: A racial equity analysis of administrator perspectives. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice. Published, 10/18/2023.
    https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2023.2221212
  • Castro, E. L. & Gould, M. R. (2023). In search of uncertainty in prison higher education. Journal of Higher Education in Prison. Published, 04/03/2023.
    https://www.higheredinprison.org/journal/2-1-in-s...
  • Castro, E. L., Fierros, C. O. & Montero, E. (2023). Xenophobia in prison higher education: Towards recruiting and supporting undocumented people in prison. About Campus. Accepted, 01/31/2023.
  • Aguilar Padilla, E., Castro, E. L. & Magaña, S. (2023). Delaying the box: An analysis of state legislation regarding criminal history questions in college admissions. . Information Age Press. Published, 02/01/2023.
    https://www.infoagepub.com/products/Critiques-for-...
  • Castro, E. L., Royer, C. E., Lerman, A. E., & Gould, M. R. (2022). Beyond Pell restoration: Addressing persistent funding challenges in prison higher education toward racial and economic justice. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000439. Published, 11/01/2022.
    https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000439
  • Castro, E. L., Aguilar Padilla, E. & Gaskill, S. (2022). Pell is not enough: Exploring the experience of participants in Second Chance Pell. Research Collaborative on Higher Education in Prison. Published, 09/01/2022.
    https://cherp.utah.edu/publications/exploring_expe...
  • Castro, E. L., Royer, C. E., Gould, M. R. & Lerman, A. (2022). Beyond Pell restoration: Addressing persistent funding challenges in higher education in prison toward racial and economic justice. Alliance for Higher Education in Prison. Published, 06/01/2022.
    https://assets-global.website-files.com/5e3dd3cf0b...
  • Castro, E. L. & Royer, C. E. (2021). College admissions in the carceral state.. Harvard Education Press. Published, 11/01/2021.
    https://www.hepg.org/hep-home/books/ethics-in-high...
  • Aguilar Padilla, E., Magaña, S. & Castro, E. L. (2021). Delaying the Box: An Analysis of State Legislation Regarding Criminal History Questions in College Admissions. Information Age Press. Accepted, 08/01/2021.
  • Castro, E. L. & Magaña, S. (2021). Enhancing the carceral state: The use of criminal/ized histories in college admissions. Journal of College Student Development. Vol. 61, 814-831. Published, 10/01/2021.
    https://muse.jhu.edu/article/774248#:~:text=The%20...
  • Royer, C. E., Castro, E. L., Aguilar Padilla, E. & Hurtado, T. (2021). Leveraging the power of Pell in prison: Equity challenges in scaling the Second Chance Pell Pilot Initiative. Research Collaborative on Higher Education in Prison. Published, 02/01/2021.
    https://daqy2hvnfszx3.cloudfront.net/wp-content/up...
  • Castro, E. L. (2020). “They sellin’ us a dream they not preparin’ us for”: College readiness, dysconscious racism, and policy failure in one rural Black high school. Urban Review. Published, 06/01/2020.
    https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11256-0...
  • Royer, C. E., Castro, E. L., Cortes-Lopez, E., Gould, M. R. & Lerman, A. (2020). The landscape of higher education in prison, 2018-2019. Alliance for Higher Education in Prison. Published, 12/01/2020.
    https://assets-global.website-files.com/5e3dd3cf0b...
  • Castro, E. L. & Gould, M. R. (2019). Higher education in prison: Thoughts on building a community of scholarship and practice. Critical Education, 10(13), 1-15. Published, 05/01/2019.
  • Castro, E. L. & Zamani-Gallaher, E. M. (2018). Expanding quality higher education for currently and formerly incarcerated people: Committing to equity and protecting against exploitation. ASHE-NITE, Lumina Foundation. Published, 11/12/2018.
    https://www.indiana.edu/~cece/wordpress/2018/11/21...
  • Erin L. Castro (2018). Thoughts on racism, the language of reduced recidivism, and college-in-prison: Toward an anti-racist praxis. Critical Education. Published, 11/01/2018.
    https://ices.library.ubc.ca/index.php/criticaled/a...
  • Erin L. Castro, Rebecca Hunter, Tara Hardison & Vanessa Johnson-Ojeda (2018). The landscape of postsecondary education in prison and the influence of Second Chance Pell: An analysis of transferability, credit-bearing status, and accreditation. The Prison Journal. 1-29. Published, 09/01/2018.
    http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/003288...
  • Castro, E. L. & Gould, M. R. (2018). What is higher education in prison? Introduction to Radical Departures: Ruminations on the Purposes of Higher Education in Prison. Special volume for Critical Education, 9(10), 1-16. Published, 07/01/2018.
    http://ices.library.ubc.ca/index.php/criticaled/ar...
  • Casey E. George, Erin L. Castro & Blanca Rincón (2018). Investigating the origins of STEM intervention programs: an isomorphic analysis. Studies in Higher Education. 1-17. Published, 04/09/2018.
    https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/030750...
  • Castro, E. L., Hunter, R., Hardison, T., Johnson-Ojeda, V., & Suzuki, H. (2018, June). The landscape of postsecondary education in U.S. Prisons. Research Brief. Salt Lake City, UT: Research Lab on Higher Education in Prison, University of Utah. Published, 06/01/2018.
    https://daqy2hvnfszx3.cloudfront.net/wp-content/up...
  • Castro, E. L. & Brawn, M. (2017). Why we should be critical of critical pedagogy in prison classrooms: A conversation between an incarcerated student and non-incarcerated teacher. Harvard Educational Review, 87(1), 99-121. Published, 04/01/2017.
    http://hepg.org/her-home/issues/harvard-educationa...
  • Castro, E. L., & Dockendorff, K. J. (2017). Expanding the circle: Creating an inclusive environment in higher education for LGBTQ students and studies. Book Review. SUNY Press. Review of Higher Education, 40(3), 467-471. Retrieved online: https://muse.jhu.edu/article/650173/summary. Published, 12/14/2015.
    https://muse.jhu.edu/article/650173/summary
  • Castro, E. L. & Cortez, E. (2017). Exploring the lived experiences and intersectionalities of Mexican community college transfer students: Qualitative insights toward expanding a transfer receptive culture. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 41(2), 77-92. Published, 01/01/2017.
    http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10668926.2016.1158672
  • Edén Cortez & Erin L. Castro (2017). Mexican and Mexican-American student reflections on transfer: Institutional agents and the continued role of the community college. Association of Mexican American Educator’s Journal. Vol. 11, 155-176. Published, 12/18/2017.
    http://amaejournal.utsa.edu/index.php/amae/article...
  • Castro, E. L., Brawn, M., Graves, D., Mayorga, O., Page, J. & Slater, A. (2016). Research-In-Brief: Higher education in an era of mass incarceration: Possibility under constraint. Journal of Critical Studies of Higher Education and Student Affairs, 1(2), 13-33. Published, 02/01/2016.
    http://ecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?articl...
  • Castro, Erin (2016). Editor's Notes. Understanding Equity in Community College Practice. New Directions for Community Colleges. Vol. 171. Published, 01/01/2016.
    http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd...
  • Castro, Erin (2016). Avoiding the traps of equity work: A blueprint for getting started. New Directions for Community Colleges. Vol. 171. Published, 01/01/2016.
    http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd...
  • Castro, E. L., Michael Brawn, Orlando Mayorga, Johnny Page, Daniel Graves & Andra Slater (2015). Higher education in an era of mass incarceration: Possibility under constraint. Journal of Critical Studies in Higher Education and Student Affairs. Vol. 1, 13-33. Published, 04/15/2015.
    http://ecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?articl...
  • Castro, E. L. (2015). Not ready for college, but ready for the military: A policy challenge for the college readiness agenda. Education Policy Analysis Archives. Published, 08/01/2015.
    http://epaa.asu.edu/ojs/article/view/1887
  • Castro, E. L. (2013). Racialized readiness for college and career: Toward an equity grounded social science of intervention programming. Community College Review, 41(4), 292-310. Published, 11/01/2013.
    http://crw.sagepub.com/content/41/4/292.abstract
  • Parker, L. & Castro, E. L. (2013). An Introduction to Critical Race Realism: Theoretical and methodological implications for educational research. Found in Carter & Tuitt (Eds.) Contesting the Myth of a Post-Racial Era: The Continued Significance of Race in Education. Peter Lang. Published, 01/2013.
    http://www.peterlang.com/index.cfm?event=cmp.ccc.s...
  • Castro, Erin. L. (2012). Rethinking College and Career Readiness: A call for context to address racial inequality. Newsletter. Champaign, IL: Office of Community College Research and Leadership. Published, 11/2012.
    http://occrl.illinois.edu/articles/rethinking-coll...

Research Keywords

  • Higher Education in Prison
  • College-in-Prison
  • Postsecondary Prison Education
  • Educational Equity & Justice

Presentations

  • Castro, E. L. (2018). Working toward a future of advocacy, equity, & quality: Researching the field of higher education (in prison). Opening Keynote Address for the 8th National Conference on Higher Education in Prison. Indianapolis, IN. Invited Talk/Keynote, Accepted, 08/01/2018.
    https://vimeo.com/304146303
  • Castro, E. L. (2018). What is the role of the university in an era of mass incarceration? Considering challenges and opportunities amid a changing landscape. Stetson University. DeLand, FL. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 11/06/2018.
  • Coon, S.* & Castro, E. L. (2019). Theorizing critical carceral pedagogies: Teaching toward the purposes of higher education in and against prisons. American Educational Research Association National Conference in Toronto, Canada. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 04/08/2019.
  • Castro, E. L. (2019). Documenting success in higher education in prison programs. Insights from the Research Collaborative on Higher Education in Prison at the University of Utah. Transformative Education in Prison and Beyond. University of Wyoming in Laramie, WY. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 03/01/2019.
  • Castro, E. L. & Hardison, T.* (2018). A timeline of Pell Grant availability in prison: A critical policy analysis regarding access to higher education for incarcerated students. Association for the Study of Higher Education conference in Tampa, FL. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 08/01/2018.
  • Castro, E. L., Scott, R., Eisen, A., Cappas-Toro, P., & Torres, A. (2018). A Critical Look at Higher Education in Prison: Race, Language, Recidivism, and Academic Tourism. Association for the Study of Higher Education conference in Tampa, FL. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 08/01/2018.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited; 2018). Reimagining assessment: Research, data, and evaluation of college in prison. A Convening of the Consortium for the Liberal Arts in Prison. Led by Bard Prison Initiative, University of Notre Dame, and Holy Cross College. South Bend, IN. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 04/19/2018.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited; 2017). Higher education and prison. Commissioned Presidential Session. Association for the Study of Higher Education conference in Houston, TX. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 11/16/2017.
  • Castro, E. L., Johnson-Ojeda, V.*, Hardison, T.*, Hunter, R.*, & Crossland, S.* (2017). College in prison? An equity based descriptive analysis of postsecondary educational opportunity inside U.S. prisons. Association for the Study of Higher Education conference in Houston, TX. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/09/2017.
  • Castro, E. L., Johnson-Ojeda, V., Hardison, T., Hunter, R., & Crossland, S. (2017). A nationwide snapshot of college-in-prison programming. The National Conference on Higher Education in Prison in Houston, TX. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/06/2017.
    http://www.nchep2017.org/schedule.html
  • Castro, E. L. & Dockendorff, K. (2017). The role of the community college in providing postsecondary education in prison: A critical descriptive analysis of postsecondary opportunity for incarcerated people. Paper presentation at the Council for the Study of Community Colleges (CSCC) conference in Fort Worth, Texas. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 01/01/2017.
  • Castro, E. L. (2016). Incarceration and College-Going. Division J Subcommittee for Diversity and Inclusion Vice Presidential Invited Session. American Educational Research Association Conference in Washington, D.C. Invited Talk/Keynote, Accepted, 02/01/2016.
  • Castro, E. L. (2016). Cautioning against the rationales of ‘reduced recidivism’ and ‘reentry’: Reinscribing public higher education during hyperincarceration. Paper presentation at the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) conference in Columbus, Ohio. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/10/2016.
  • Taylor, J. L., Castro, E. L., Dockendorff, K., & Cortez, E. (2016). Researching and Understanding Transfer Student Success at the University of Utah. Paper presentation at the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 04/08/2016.
  • Castro, E. L. (Chair), Scott, R., Weissman, M., Page, J., & Patrick, F. (2015). Pathways from prison? Postsecondary educational opportunity for incarcerated and felony disenfranchised students. Symposium presentation at the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) conference in Denver, Colorado. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/07/2015.
  • Castro, E. L. & Brawn, M. (2015). Why we should be critical of critical pedagogy in prison: A conversation between an incarcerated student and a non-incarcerated teacher. Paper presentation at the American Educational Studies Association (AESA) conference in San Antonio, Texas. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/05/2015.
  • Castro, E. L. (2015). Navigating the Politics of Social Justice Work and Scholar-Activism. Division J Vice Presidential Invited Session at the American Educational Research Association Conference in Chicago, Illinois. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 04/15/2015.
  • Castro, E. L. (2015). “They Sellin’ Us a Dream They Not Preparin’ Us For”: Fiction and Failure in One College and Career Readiness Intervention Program. The American Educational Research Association conference in Chicago, Illinois. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 12/01/2014.
  • Castro, E. L. (2015). College and career readiness programming reframed: Building a critical race ethnographic method in educational research. Paper presentation at the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry in Champaign, Illinois. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 01/01/2015.
  • Cortez, E. & Castro, E. L. (2015). “I just kinda figured things out as I went”: Improving the pathway for Latin@ community college transfer students in building a transfer receptive culture. Paper presentation at the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) conference in Denver, Colorado. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/12/2015.
  • Castro, E. L. (2015). On the purposes of higher education for democracy. Development Directors Meeting. University of Utah. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 03/01/2015.
  • Castro, E. L. (2014). “The panel has the distinct potential to use the student prisoners as spectacle”: On the politics of doing higher education in prison. National Symposium on Higher Education in Prison conference in Champaign, Illinois. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 10/07/2014.
  • Castro, E. L. (2014). Lacking the Motivation to Find Better Explanations for Student Disengagement: The Seductive Gaze of Deficit Ideology. The American Educational Studies Association (AESA) conference in Toronto, Canada. Conference Paper, Refereed, Accepted, 07/15/2014.
  • Muñoz, J., Castro, E. L., & Rincón, B. (2013). Differentiated Impact?: A Critical Quantitative Analysis of Low-income Students of Color within Tuition Differential Majors. Paper presentation at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Conference Paper, Refereed, Accepted, 11/01/2013.
  • Castro, E. L. (2014). Beyond Academia: Reaching a Broader Audience. Division J Fireside Chat, Invited Session at the American Educational Research Association Conference in Chicago, Illinois. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 04/15/2014.
  • Castro, E. L. (Chair), Ginsburg, R., & Scott, R. (2013). Higher education in an era of mass incarceration: Considerations for policy, practice, and the future of democracy. Symposium & paper proposal for the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) conference in St. Louis, Missouri. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/02/2013.
  • Castro, E. L. (2013). College for all?: Higher education, military recruitment, and critical reflexivity at one rural high school. Paper proposal for the American Educational Studies Association (AESA) conference in Baltimore, Maryland. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/01/2013.
  • Castro, E. L. (2012). Social science derived from deficit models: Race, equity, and a critique of David Conley’s college and career readiness model. Paper presented at the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/01/2013.
  • George-Jackson, C., Castro, E. L. & Rincon, B. (2013). Tracing the origins of STEM intervention programs in higher education: Examining the role of theories of change. Paper presentation at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in San Francisco, California. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 10/2012.
  • Castro, E. L. (Chair & Co-Discussant), Scott, R., (Co-Discussant) Brawn, M. Page, J., Mayorga, O. & Slater, A. (2012). Higher Education Under Constraint: Highlighting the scholarship of college students who are incarcerated. Symposium presentation at the American Educational Studies Association (AESA) conference in Seattle, Washington. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/2012.
  • Castro, E. L. (2012). “We take in some high-risk students, but we don’t take very many”: The mobilization of deficit discourses in STEM intervention programs on college campuses. Paper presented at the Critical Race Studies in Education Association Conference (CRSEA) conference in New York City, New York. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 05/29/2012.
  • Castro, E. L. & Parker, L. (2012). Challenging the discourse of a post-racial Future: Exploring the continued significance of race in U.S. higher education. Paper presented at the American Education Research Association (AERA) conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 04/28/2012.
  • Castro, E. L., Caradonna, C., & Gould, M. R. (2023). Mission, metrics, and mass incarceration: How college and university presidents discuss prison higher education. Association for the Study of Higher Education conference in Minneapolis, MN. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/16/2023.
  • Castro, E. L. (2023). Prison higher education research and futures. The Prison Research and Innovation Initiative [webinar]. The Urban Institute. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 06/27/2023.
    https://www.urban.org/events/prison-research-meets...
  • Erin L. Castro (2023) Navigating the Pell horizon. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 06/01/2023.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gaskill, S. (2023, Feb 16). Preparing for Pell: Student financial aid literacy and autonomy [webinar]. Alliance for Higher Education in Prison. Presentation, Presented, 02/16/2023.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gaskill, S. (2023, Feb 9). Preparing for Pell: Overview and discussion of the research [webinar]. Alliance for Higher Education in Prison. Presentation, Presented, 02/09/2023.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gaskill, S. (2023, Jan 19). What do we know about Pell Grants in Prison? An overview of the research [webinar]. Ready for Pell Virtual Institute, Jobs for the Future. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 01/19/2023.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gaskill, S. (2023, Jan 19). What do we know about Pell Grants in Prison? An overview of the research [webinar]. Ready for Pell Virtual Institute, Jobs for the Future. Presentation, Presented, 01/19/2023.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited, 2022). An introduction to carceral studies. Transformative Intersectional Collective, School for Cultural and Social Transformation, University of Utah. Salt Lake City, UT. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 11/10/2022.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited, 2022). Prison Higher Education & Abolition [webinar]. Abolitionist Pedagogy Conversation Series. Colby College. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 10/13/2022.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gould, M. R. (invited, 2022, February 2). The research landscape for U.S. higher education in prison [webinar]. UNESCO Chair for Applied Research for Higher Education in Prison. https://www.cmv-educare.com/2022/02/rediffusion-webinaire-2021-2022-3/ . Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 02/02/2022.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gaskill, S. (2022, Feb 9). Preparing for Pell: Overview and discussion of the research [webinar]. Alliance for Higher Education in Prison. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 02/02/2022.
    https://www.higheredinprison.org/post/the-research...
  • Castro, E. L. & Gould, M. R. (invited, 2022), February 2. The research landscape for U.S. higher education in prison [webinar]. UNESCO Chair for Applied Research for Higher Education in Prison. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 02/02/2022.
    https://www.cmv-educare.com/2022/02/rediffusion-we...
  • Castro, E. L., Scott, R., Harris Jr., T. & Jain, G. (2021). A new digital tool to expand access to college and reentry services. Panel presentation at the National Conference on Higher Education in Prison. Virtual meeting. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/12/2021.
  • Lerman, A., Royer, C. E., & Castro, E. L. (2021). Program data and evaluation workshop: Taking stock and building out. National Conference on Higher Education in Prison. Denver, CO. Other, Presented, 11/07/2021.
  • Aguilar Padilla, E., Royer, C., E., & Hurtado, T., & Castro, E. L. (2021). Criminal history questions in transfer admissions: A mixed method analysis of Hispanic Serving Institutions. Paper presentation at the Association for the Study of Higher Education. San Juan, Puerto Rico. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 11/06/2021.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited; 2021). Higher education and prison. Commissioned Presidential Session. Association for the Study of Higher Education conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 11/06/2021.
  • Castro, E. L. & Gould, M. R. (invited, 2021, October 26). Improving data collection and tracking for incarcerated college students: An update and proposal. IPEDS Technical Review Panel #65: Incarcerated Students and Second Chance Pell: Data Collection Considerations. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 10/26/2021.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited, 2021, September 29). Racism, recidivism, and higher education in prison [webinar]. Beyond Recidivism: Research on the Value of Post-Secondary Education Beyond Recidivism. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 09/29/2021.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLXQLcCJLCo
  • Royer, C. E. & Castro, E. L. (2021). The impact of prison-initiated discipline on higher education in prison. Paper presentation at the American Educational Research Association. Virtual meeting. Conference Paper, Refereed, Presented, 04/16/2021.
  • Castro, E. L., Scott, R., Harris Jr., T. & Jain, G. (2021). A New Digital Tool to Expand Access to College and Reentry Services. Panel presentation at the National Conference on Higher Education in Prison. Virtual meeting. Presentation, Presented, 03/04/2021.
  • Royer, C. E. & Castro, E. L. (2021). The impact of prison-initiated discipline on higher education in prison. Paper presentation at the American Educational Research Association. Virtual meeting. Conference Paper, Refereed, Accepted, 11/01/2020.
  • Castro, E. L. & Aguilar Padilla, E.* (2020) Before and after: The Common App, prior criminal history questions, and colleges with in-prison programs [Poster Session]. AERA Annual Meeting San Francisco, CA (Conference Canceled). Conference Paper, Refereed, Other, 04/06/2020.
  • Castro, E. L. (invited, 2020). Researching the landscape of higher education in prison. College of Education, University of Utah. Salt Lake City, UT. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 02/12/2020.
  • Castro, E. L. (2019). Challenging normative understandings of today’s postsecondary students. The Will to Reimagine Webinar Series, Association for the Study of Higher Education. Other, Presented, 10/07/2019.
    https://www.ashe.ws/Files/ASHE2019%20Webinar%20Epi...
  • Castro, E. L. (invited, 2019). Opportunities, threats, disruptions and challenges facing prison higher education. The conference of Freeing the Mind and Building a Future: The Role and Future of the Liberal Arts in Prison Education. Bennington College, VT. Invited Talk/Keynote, Presented, 04/16/2019.

Research Groups

  • Emily Kersten, Graduate Student. 08/15/2023 - present. Awards/Scholarships/Stipends: Paid GA.
  • Tara Olson, Other. 12/01/2022 - 12/29/2023.
  • Cydney Caradonna, Graduate Student. Educational Leadership and Policy. 08/15/2021 - present. Awards/Scholarships/Stipends: Funded on Community Partners grant.
  • Stephanie Gaskill, Other. 07/01/2021 - 01/02/2023.
  • Estefanie Aguilar-Padilla, Undergraduate Student. 01/01/2019 - 08/01/2022.
  • Haruna Suzuki, Graduate Student. 01/01/2018 - 08/01/2019.
  • Tara Hardison, Graduate Student. 05/01/2017 - 01/07/2019.
  • Vanessa Johnson-Ojeda, Graduate Student. 05/01/2017 - 08/01/2018.
  • Rebecca Hunter, Graduate Student. 05/01/2017 - 08/01/2018.

Grants, Contracts & Research Gifts

  • Evaluation of John Jay Prisoner Reentry Institute: College Initiative. PI: Gregory Wolniak. 08/01/2018 - present. Total project budget to date: $350,000.00
  • Research Collaborative on Higher Education in Prison. PI: Erin L. Castro. 07/01/2018 - present. Total project budget to date: $4,000.00
  • University of Utah Prison Education Project. PI: Erin L. Castro. Sorenson Legacy Foundation, 02/01/2018 - present. Total project budget to date: $30,000.00
  • Understanding Student Transfer and Mobility at the University of Utah. PI: Erin L. Castro. 08/01/2015 - 04/29/2016. Total project budget to date: $3,429.00