Full Name
Belinda Wheeler
Title
Senior Program Associate
Institution/Organization
Vera Institute of Justice
Bio

Belinda Wheeler is a Senior Program Associate at Vera Institute of Justice where she focuses on quality controls for higher education in prison programming. She is co-author of Postsecondary Education in Prison Programs and Accreditation—General Considerations for Peer Reviewers and Accreditors. Prior to joining Vera, Belinda served as the founding director of Claflin University’s Pathways from Prison Program and director of their Center for Social Justice. Claflin University, a U.S. Department of Education Second Chance Pell Experimental Site, is one of a handful of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the higher education in prison space. In addition to helping Claflin University build its program with the state department of corrections, Belinda provided guidance to other HBCUs interested in higher education in prison. Originally from Queensland, Australia, Belinda earned her BA from Purdue University, her MA from Indiana University—Purdue University, Indianapolis, and her PhD from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.

Belinda Wheeler