Arrendale prison inmates offered diploma completion program

ATLANTA (AP) A newly created partnership between the Georgia Department of Corrections and a north Georgia charter school is expected to help some prison inmates earn their high school diplomas. <br /> <br /> Gov. Nathan Deal said in a statement Wednesday that inmates at Arrendale State Prison in Habersham County will be given the chance to complete their high school diplomas through a partnership with the Mountain Education Charter School. Arrendale houses 1,400 female inmates. <br /> <br /> Deal says seven out of every 10 Georgia inmates lack high school diplomas or a GED, which complicates convicts' efforts to find jobs after they're released. <br /> <br /> Deal says the Department of Corrections plans to expand the program next year and offer courses at the Burruss Correctional Training Center in Forsyth.