Ten Incarcerated Individuals Earn Diplomas at ACJ Graduation
Published on June 04, 2026
Ten residents of the Allegheny County Jail officially closed an important chapter of their lives on June 3.
Family members, educators, members of ACJ staff and special guests were in attendance during the graduation ceremony for incarcerated individuals who earned high school or Pennsylvania Secondary Education diplomas. A total of 13 individuals graduated this semester, but three did not walk during the event.
Warden Trevor Wingard told the graduating class he has spent a lot of his life working in correctional facilities and knows of formerly incarcerated individuals who are now doing amazing things.
“They are running businesses,” Wingard said. “They went on to further education. They have amazing stories to tell.”
The diplomas earned, said Allegheny Couty Executive Sarah Innamorato, are more than just a piece of paper.
“It represents the long hours you have put in, the determination that you have, and the decision you made to keep believing in yourself,” said Innamorato. Earning the diploma, she continued, also represents resilience, growth and possibility.
“It reminds us it is never too late to start again,” said Innamorato.
Wingard provided the new graduates with an example of two formerly incarcerated individuals who earned diplomas while in a correctional facility, were released, and went on to start a very successful dry-cleaning business in the Warden’s hometown.
They now have an amazing story to tell.
Being incarcerated was just one chapter in the lives of those two, said Wingard.
“Just let (this) just be a chapter,” Wingard told the class. “Keep moving, keep going forward, capitalize on what you just did.”
Media inquiries may be directed to Jesse Geleynse, Public Information Officer for the Allegheny County Jail
jesse.geleynse@alleghenycounty.us or by phone at 412-350-1267 or 412-760-4760 (cell).