The Education from the Inside Out (EIO) Coalition is a national, nonpartisan collaborative of advocates and community members, led by College and Community Fellowship, the Fortune Society and the Center for Community Alternatives, working to remove systemic barriers to higher education facing students while they are in prison and once they come home. EIO Coalition's two issue areas are: 1) increasing in-prison higher education programs via reinstating federal and state need based financial aid to currently incarcerated students (Pell Grants and TAP Grants), and 2) Removing the question on college admission forms that ask if you have a criminal history. The transformative effects of access to higher education is clear: it reduces recidivism, increases the employment rates and opportunities, improves physical and mental health, and strengthens communities. At this roundtable discussion, you will learn about the barriers that exist to accessing higher education during and after incarceration and the grassroots and policy work that is being done to remove these barriers. You will also learn concrete ways you can get involved with the movement and support the work of the coalition. There will be a special screening of the film Passport to the Future: Accessing Higher Education in an Era of Mass Incarceration, a documentary by Benay Rubenstein about barriers to college admissions for applicants with criminal records.