Gov. Beshear is leading an education-first administration because he knows that supporting educational opportunities for every Kentuckian is the key to building a better Kentucky.
GED Prep Classes
Earning a GED greatly increases an individual’s opportunities for future success upon release. Free GED prep classes are available to all Kentuckians, including state and county inmates, through Kentucky Adult Education. Programs include adult literacy, adult basic education and adult secondary education/GED test credential preparation. Beginning in 2020, Gov. Beshear also waived the GED testing fee for all first-time test takers, eliminating a financial barrier to success for many who did not graduate from high school.
Contact your local Kentucky Adult Education center to learn more.
Job Training
Apprenticeships are a great way for individuals reentering the workforce to learn on-the-job training while also receiving a paycheck. Learn more about
Registered Apprenticeships at the Kentucky Works website.
Pre-Apprenticeship Partnership
The Ironworkers Union and the Finishing Trades Institute of District Council 91 (Painters Union) are providing pre-apprenticeship instruction and coursework to offenders in order to prepare them to start an apprenticeship program with an employer upon release.
The Ironworkers Union course launched January 2025 at Northpoint Training Center. This course is offered rotationally on 5-week cohorts between Northpoint Training Center and Luther Luckett Correctional Complex. These courses provide instruction to 15 offenders during each session.
The Painters Union Career Readiness Program was conducted in July 2025 at the Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women. It provided training to 15 offenders during a 4-week class.
For more information or to provide services, please contact Donna McClamroch at
DonnaG.McClamroch@ky.gov.
Educational Programs
The Kentucky Department of Corrections provides educational programs and career and technical educational services to those currently incarcerated to help them overcome any barriers they may face upon release. The programs include reentry simulations, job and resource fairs and expungement sessions. Many of these events are held in conjunction with local community partners in the reentry field throughout the commonwealth.
Learn more about
educational programs.
Grants for College
Through the federal Pell grant and original Second Chance Pell grant funding, incarcerated individuals can receive assistance with college tuition and materials. Currently classes are offered for individuals housed at Blackburn Correctional Complex, Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex, Green River Correctional Complex, Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women, Kentucky State Penitentiary, Lee Adjustment Center, Little Sandy Correctional Complex, Luther Luckett Correctional Complex, Northpoint Training Center, and Western Kentucky Correctional Complex. Incarcerated individuals interested in applying to take college classes should contact the onsite college coordinator or the institution’s Corrections Regional Education Administrator.
College partners using the original Second Chance Pell grant funding will be transitioning to the Pell Grant’s Prison Education Program per U.S. Department of Education regulations.
Colleges interested in providing services should contact Amber Skaggs at
ambern.skaggs@ky.gov.
Kentucky Youth Challenge Academies
The mission of the Kentucky National Guard Bluegrass Youth Challenge Program is to intervene and reclaim the lives of at-risk youth to produce program graduates with the values, skills, education and self-discipline necessary to excel as adults. The academies are a 22-week residential course designed to take Kentuckians ages 16 to 18 and give them the tools necessary to see their dreams become a reality. They are a cost-free program.
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Bluegrass Challenge Academy is located at 114 Conroy Ave., Fort Knox, KY 40121. To learn more,
click here or contact them at 877-599-6684.
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Appalachian Challenge Academy is located at 465 Grays Branch Rd., Grays Knob, KY 40829. To learn more,
click here or contact them at 855-596-4927 or via email
admissions@challengeaca.com.