Peter Merts, photographer

These photos show the inaugural commencement ceremonies for the San Diego State University VISTA program, a 2-year completion Bachelor of Arts degree for incarcerated students at Centinela State Prison in California’s Imperial Valley. VISTA stands for Valuing Incarcerated Scholars through Academia.

This folder shows the ceremony on Facility D where 12 graduates earned a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies.

SDSU's VISTA program and Holistic Learning for Higher Education in Prison are supported by CDCR and the Mellon Foundation.

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