Program
Research & Policy
We co-authored a peer-reviewed paper with UC Irvine, published by Springer, and co-drafted SB 498, California’s tablet messaging and call reform bill, from inside.
Research partners with UC Irvine’s Games + Learning + Society Center, led by Dr. Constance Steinkuehler, on a co-designed study of how our programming affects outcomes inside.
Policy works to develop proposed policy changes with the aim of improving the lives and wellbeing of incarcerated people. This team was a lead sponsor on SB 498, California’s tablet messaging and call duration reform measure, co-drafted from inside. The advocacy continues.
Current work includes our Normalized Clothing proposal, a feasible alternative to default uniform norms that preserves safety and operational clarity for staff while offering a mode of self-expression to residents. We also advance policy through participatory design, moving from lived experience toward authored legislation that creates enforceable, systemic change. This research is on a path toward formal publication so findings can travel to correctional facilities nationwide.
Our goal
Research verifies what the programs change; policy codifies it. The aim is to move lived experience from anecdote to evidence to authored legislation, so what works inside San Quentin can become enforceable practice elsewhere.
What we did
Co-authored a peer-reviewed paper with UC Irvine, published by Springer, written from inside San Quentin. Co-drafted SB 498, California’s tablet messaging and call duration reform, and served as a lead sponsor; the advocacy continues.
Current work includes the Normalized Clothing proposal, an alternative to default uniform norms that preserves safety and operational clarity for staff while offering residents a mode of self-expression.
Impact
Program impact
- A peer-reviewed paper co-authored from inside San Quentin, published by Springer in 2026
- SB 498 co-drafted from inside and carried by lawmakers; the advocacy continues
- Normalized Clothing proposal in active development