Students at Stateville prison find empowerment, hope in arts education

Stateville art students designed the mural in Washington Park to honor Margaret Burroughs, the celebrated artist, poet and co-founder of the DuSable Museum of African American History. (Parole Illinois)

When Darrell Fair first arrived at Stateville Correctional Center in 2003, he felt a profound lack of purpose.

The men’s maximum-security state prison in Crest Hill offered few options to fill his days aside from his daily jogs, a habit from his time in the Marine Corps.