About Level
Our vision
We have a bold vision of a world where people in prison build brighter futures through transformative education. By unlocking every person's potential to contribute to thriving communities, we are reshaping the story we all tell ourselves about what is possible.
Our mission
Level creates and distributes educational and job training content for people in prison so that they can thrive after release and break the destructive cycle of incarceration. We focus our program on the unique needs of people in prison and their support systems on the outside. We believe in the power of education to create transformational change in the futures of the incarcerated as well as their families, the communities they come home to and the public as a whole.
Our team
Staff
Sarah Pollock
Alex Wright
Terrence Moline
Kate Mullan
Board of Directors
Suzi Sosa
Demetrius James
Alex Wright
Kate Mullan
Marcus Lopez
Daniel Williamson
Our history
Alex Wright and Kate Mullan volunteered for 10 years at one of the country's largest prison literacy organizations. They experienced firsthand, through thousands of interactions with people in prison, the challenges of accessing education behind bars. Kate and Alex founded Level and began serving a few locations in one state. Word got around and demand for Level's program quickly reached 1,000 prisons. Families and friends of people in prison are getting involved by enrolling their loved ones on the inside and supporting their shared visions for a brighter future.
What we believe
A big problem requires a big solution
We believe that making a difference in the American prison system requires a large-scale solution that matches the scale of the problem itself. With two million currently incarcerated and 600,000 released from prison every year, the scale of the problem and opportunity is huge. Our vision for Level's scale is equally huge.
Fair chances for everyone
We believe that communities thrive when everyone, regardless of their past or present, has access to educational resources and opportunities to pursue transformative growth.
Communities of support are vital
We believe that outcomes are improved when families, friends and other supporters on the outside are included in the educational advancement of people in prison. Community support feeds individual growth, which in turn transforms communities. Incarceration affects everyone, and the people most impacted want the same things - healing and moving forward, together.
Brighter futures are possible
People in prison and their supporters on the outside have the capacity and desire for transformation through education. Our shared future depends on what we do today. We support the inherent motivations and aspirations of people where they are today so that we can build that brighter future for all of us.
How we work
People first
Our first priority is the success of our learners on the inside and their supporters on the outside. The services we provide, the needs we fulfill, and the problems we solve are defined and evaluated by the people we serve. Our commitment to dignity is based on a belief that putting people first ensures the best long-term outcomes for success.
Access for all
We turn restrictions into opportunities so that we leave no one behind. Our program is designed to reach people who often don't have access to educational programming. By making our content accessible even for those most difficult to reach, we increase opportunities for transformative change through education.
Community powered
Transformation doesn't happen alone, yet incarceration is often defined by isolation. In response, our program builds its strength through community. We combat the profound isolation experienced by our learners on the inside and their sponsors on the outside. Together, as a community, we build connection through a journey of education.
