Call for Annual APWA Advisors
April 20, 2026
The APWA Call for Advisors interest form closed on May 31, 2026.
Thank you to the many who reached out for your positive responses. APWA staff is reviewing submissions and will follow up in June.
To stay up to date on future APWA developments and opportunities, please subscribe to the APWA newsletter or follow the APWA on Instagram (@apwa_prisonwitness).
The American Prison Writing Archive (APWA) at Johns Hopkins University is seeking advisors who have direct involvement in support networks for people who are incarcerated.
This is a year-long commitment and will be compensated with $3,000. System-impacted individuals will take priority for selecting the next advisory positions.
The APWA is the first fully searchable digital archive of nonfiction essays and poems written about direct experience with U.S. prisons and jails. Relocated from Hamilton College to Johns Hopkins University in 2022, the APWA’s website currently hosts over 4,000 essays by over 1,000 authors writing from over four hundred facilities.
This written testimony from prison facilities across the nation serves as an unprecedented resource for reassessing U.S. criminal legal practices, who they target, and their effects on individuals, families, and communities.
As the Archive continues to grow, it’s important we recognize the risks, limitations, and gaps in representation and untapped opportunities and connections within and beyond the archive.
No archive is perfectly comprehensive. We learn not only from the sources that are present, but also by critically considering archival silences and absences. What sources are not here? Whose voices are not represented? What topics may be unwritten? How can we continue to develop our materials and processes to best serve our authors?
To better understand the carceral landscape, expectations and limitations of writers who are incarcerated, and systemic issues, the APWA strives to build lasting relationships with individuals and organizations who have feet on the ground and eyes on carceral activities.
Prioritized Communities
We especially need help illuminating landscapes and carceral practices for the following places and groups; however, we welcome those who have strong relationships with other communities and knowledge of carceral systems more generally.
Geographic Regions
Gulf
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia
Plains
Oklahoma, Kansas, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska
Other
Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Iowa, New Mexico, Washington D.C., New England
Groups
- Women
- People who are trans or gender non-conforming
- Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
- Native Americans
- People confined in jails
- People aged 70 or older
- People aged 18-25
Advisor Commitments
- One year with possible renewal
- One 1.5 hour evening meeting per month
- Familiarization with APWA mission, guiding principles, and current projects
- Review and feedback on monthly reports and ongoing activities
- Review and feedback on policy & material revisions, not exceeding 5 hours per month
Advisor Expectations
- Considerations for the APWA’s placement in the larger ecosystem of documentation and advocacy
- Helping the APWA (and its collaborators) better understand the needs, limitations, and desires of incarcerated writers
- Forging connections with regional organizations and individuals for networks of support, collaboration, knowledge, and resource sharing
- Guiding discovery of evolving carceral practices
- Understanding and strategizing risks to ensure safety and privacy while honoring the autonomy of authors
Recognition
In appreciation of their time and effort, APWA Advisors will be offered:
- Stipends of $3000 per year, with opportunity for renewal
- In-person and virtual opportunities to connect with other APWA Advisors and others in the field regarding efforts to support people who are incarcerated
- Public acknowledgement on the APWA’s website, if desired
