Bidhan Chandra Roy
Professor of English and Program Director
California State University, Los Angeles
Bidhan Chandra Roy is a co-founder of, and currently oversees, the California State University, Los Angeles Prison Graduation Initiative (PGI), the first in-prison degree program in California. Under his leadership, PGI now has two B.A. programs in three different prisons in California and is currently working on developing a bachelor’s program for officers in collaboration with University of California, San Francisco’s Amend program. Roy is also the founder of WordsUncaged, an organization that provides a platform for incarcerated artists and writers to engage with the public through book publishing, art exhibits, and digital media, serving over 2,000 incarcerated men and women since its inception. He also serves as vice president of California Humanities and is a board member of the Fair Chance Project and rapper YG’s foundation, 4Hunnid Ways.
