Shakespeare in Auburn: Critical Reflections on the Prison Classroom

As a Faculty Fellow in Engaged Scholarship, Stephen Kim is making progress on a co-written chapter for a proposed edited collection, currently titled Carceral Shakespeare. The chapter is a scholarly reflection on a fall 2021 Shakespeare course Kim taught at Auburn Correctional Facility through the Cornell Prison Education Program (CPEP), and Kim’s co-authors are currently incarcerated CPEP students who took the course. The chapter’s authors imagine that an essay written from multiple viewpoints can articulate more capaciously the impact of teaching and learning Shakespeare in the prison classroom. This project is also a collaborative effort with the staff of CPEP, who are helping the authors navigate logistical matters.

“I hope this project will also encourage others to try teaching in the prison classroom. I have seen so much intellectual brilliance, commitment to learning and compassion in this space, and I am excited for the opportunity, through this project, to persuade an even wider community of scholars to consider teaching in prisons.” —Stephen Kim