The official student newspaper of Vanderbilt University

The Vanderbilt Hustler

The official student newspaper of Vanderbilt University.
Since 1888
The official student newspaper of Vanderbilt University

The Vanderbilt Hustler

The official student newspaper of Vanderbilt University.
The official student newspaper of Vanderbilt University

The Vanderbilt Hustler

The official student newspaper of Vanderbilt University.

Vanderbilt denies financial connections private prison company CoreCivic

Kirkland+Hall.
Hunter Long
Kirkland Hall.

Today, in a statement released on Facebook and Twitter, Vanderbilt University distanced itself from CoreCivic, one of the largest private prison companies in the United States. The statement does not address the university’s history with the company, but does say that at the current time, Vanderbilt has no investments with the private prison industry.

Vanderbilt’s relationship with CoreCivic drew attention this week following criticisms of the private prison industry in light of the ongoing immigration crisis, particularly the recent policy of separating families at the border. CoreCivic, which operates eight immigration detention centers, released a statement Wednesday morning saying that “none of [their] facilities provide housing for children who aren’t under the supervision of a parent.” The company, however, alongside other major private prison companies, has come under scrutiny in recent days for its rising stock prices as a result of an expected increase in funding for detention centers under the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

CoreCivic, formerly known as the Corrections Corporation of America, was founded in 1983 by Thomas Beasley, a Vanderbilt Law School alum. Prior to the company going public in 1986, the university was an early investor. In 2007, with partial funding from CoreCivic, Vanderbilt researchers published a study which reported that states with shared public and private prison systems can save money. CoreCivic has a summary of the study on its website. Additionally, Beasley endowed the Thomas W. Beasley scholarship for U.S. Army veterans attending law school in 1997 and received a Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Vanderbilt University Law School in 2006.

In recent years, the Vanderbilt student body has demanded that the university divest from the private prison industry and address the history of investment with CoreCivic and Beasley. In March 2017, Vanderbilt Student Government unanimously passed a bill calling for a divestment from the private prison industry and to disallow any future investment in private prisons in any capacity. Following the bill’s passage, Jim Patterson, a spokesman for the university told WKRN that the university does not have any direct private prison investments, but that they will consider the bill when making future investment decisions.

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About the Contributors
Sam Zern, Former Managing Editor

Sam Zern ('20) has been a member of The Vanderbilt Hustler since her freshman year, first as a staff writer and shortly after as assistant campus editor. She went on to be campus editor and, later, editor in chief. In her senior year at Vanderbilt, Sam was managing editor and streamlined recruitment and training processes.

In her time as a member of the editorial board, she has prioritized diversity and breadth in coverage, wanting to make sure as much of Vanderbilt as possible is represented in the paper. Outside of The Hustler, she studies education policy and sociology and has worked as a journalist for local publications in Austin and Nashville. She plans to pursue a career in journalism (and will gladly take any and all advice!)

Connect with Sam: [email protected] Personal website Twitter LinkedIn

 
Hunter Long, Former Multimedia Director
Hunter Long (’21) is from Austin, TX and double majored in molecular biology and medicine, health and society. He is an avid lover of film photography, good music and all things coffee. He can be reached at [email protected].    
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Comments (2)

The Vanderbilt Hustler welcomes and encourages readers to engage with content and express opinions through the comment sections on our website and social media platforms. The Hustler reserves the right to remove comments that contain vulgarity, hate speech, personal attacks or that appear to be spam, commercial promotion or impersonation. The comment sections are moderated by our Editor-in-Chief, Rachael Perrotta, and our Social Media Director, Chloe Postlewaite. You can reach them at [email protected] and [email protected].
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Douglas Fulmer
5 years ago

Why then did you call in April for the university to divest from private prisons? Do you know something they are not saying?

N
NJNative
5 years ago

“Vanderbilt researchers published a study which reported that states with shared public and private prison systems can save money.”
I could prove that shooting accused felons dead instead of giving them a fair trial and putting them in prison would save money. That doesn’t make it right.