38 Prisoners Graduate Through Second Chance Program With Tulsa Community College

Graduates from the Second Chance Program at the Dick Conner Correctional Center are starting a new chapter.

Darrell Elliott is one of the 38 graduates. He said his degrees mean everything to him.

“I know the program says second chance, but for some people it’s their first chance,” Elliott said.

Elliot plans on using his associate degrees to start his own businesses when he gets out, in landscaping and event planning.

"It took a lot of work but like I said, it means everything to me, so it was well worth it,” Elliot said.

Since the program started 15 years ago, less than five percent of the students who went through the program, return to prison.

While Elliott is excited to get to work, another graduate, Daltyn Stout, looks forward to continuing in the classroom.

"I want to continue to get my Bachelor's. I plan on going through the correspondence program while I am in here, and then go for my Master's later,” Stout said. “Hopefully I’ll go all the way for my Doctorate's eventually."

600 people have graduated from the program since it started.