Prisoners in the Virtual Classroom

By SCOTT CARLSON

Technology makes inmate education cheaper, but the programs face unusual challenges

Behind motion detectors and razor wire, within walls of concrete and steel, Randy Brown became an alumnus of Utah State University.

Nine years ago, Mr. Brown and an accomplice tried to rob a drug dealer, and ended up killing him. Although Mr. Brown has been in and out of prison over the past 20 years, he is convinced that this term will be his last. In 1996 he walked into Utah State Prison here