JOHN YANG: Them men you're about to meet have been called many things, mostly inmates.

But these residents of a Maximum Security Illinois State Prison have been adding new titles, student, scholar, author and now college graduate.

Last month they became the first class of incarcerated graduates from Northwestern University's Prison Education Program and more are on the way this report is from Brandis Friedman of Chicago member station WTTW.

WOMAN: The first graduates and custody in the entire United States of America to earn a bachelor's degree from a top 10 University.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): The month of November is not the typical graduation season.

But that's not the only reason today was a long time coming for this class of 2023.

BERNARD MCKINLEY, Graduate: Five years ago this moment right here, I definitely want to proceed.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): W first met Bernard McKinley and his 15 classmates a year ago, midway through their last year at Northwestern, one of the country's leading research universities.

Professors and teaching assistants making the regular trip to Statesville Correctional Center near Joliet for classes.

In between classes, students doing the work behind prison walls.

JENNIFER LACKEY, Professor, Northwestern University: This cohort survived the pandemic.

They did, you know, physics by correspondence, we had staff driving boxes to and from it's really a community grassroots effort.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Their ceremony, a clear celebration in a place where there is often little to celebrate.

Each graduate gave two-minute speech.

MAN: This moment is the culmination of literally 30 years of people pouring into me.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Demonstrating what they've learned.

MAN: When you come to prison, you're going to get an education no matter what I guarantee it.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): And how they intend to use it.

One of the graduates is 44-year-old Andre Patterson serving a 60-year sentence for murder.

His coursework in cultural performance studies inspired his graduation speech.

ANDRE PATTERSON, Graduate: I really wanted to convey to challenge, the challenges that I had to personally overcome.

But along the way, while I was facing those personal challenges, I kind of had a realization that I wasn't going through this just for me.

I'm going through this for all of us, my community here, but also the community on our side.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Patterson grew up in Evanston, in the shadow of Northwestern University, never thinking he would someday hold a degree from the elite institution.

Though he does today, it's not the diploma he's most proud of.

ANDRE PATTERSON: These aren't the things that's the most significant to me.

This achievement is this a significant achievement, but it's the journey to get here.

And it's the potential possibility of what I can contribute.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Another show of how exceptional scenes like this are renowned author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates served as commencement speaker.

TA-NEHISI COATES, Author: I read someone who was coping with stage four prostate cancer as they went through the program, you know.

And Brother, you're the same one.

There's your book too, right?.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Telling them in how much he can relate to where they come from.

TA-NEHISI COATES: I was arrested for the first time in my life when I was 14 years old.

I was arrested for assaulting a teacher.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): He's had his own brush with the criminal legal system, but with clearly different outcomes.

TA-NEHISI COATES: And I knew I had to come because I don't know you.

But I know you.

I don't know you.

But I love you.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Throughout the ceremony there were multiple cheers for one person in particular.

MAN: We love you.

WOMAN: Jennifer Lackey.

MAN: Professor Lackey.

MAN: Professor Jennifer Lackey.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): The program's director and driving force, and their cohorts strongest advocate, Professor Jennifer Lackey, who says she does this work in part to make an example.

JENNIFER LACKEY: Places like Northwestern with true, you know, kind of immense resources and excellence really should be the ones to step up to do this work.

I think that what we want to do is set a model for what prison education can look like.

We want to show what's possible, and that you can truly offer the same quality of education that you provide on your campuses, even as a facility that has maximum security students in it.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): Lackey also wants to inspire hope.

JENNIFER LACKEY: This is a community too and I think a lot of people are very directed at like, what do you do with this on the outside.

This is a space too where there are lives being lived, and being able to bring mentors and tutors and you know, TAs to this space is life changing for many of the men here in this community and for their children and mothers and, you know, loved ones back home.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): While some of these men may only apply their degrees from inside prison, others will return to their communities.

Bernard McKinley is one of them.

Sentenced to 25 years in prison for murder.

He's going home in March, after 19 years on the inside.

BERNARD MCKINLEY: This is what Equal Opportunity looks like when there's not the roadblocks that's keeping us from being able to compete with the other social dynamics that are put in place to hinder us.

And if you give us the chance to see like I said the cream is going to rise to the top.

BRANDIS FRIEDMAN (voice-over): For PBS News Weekend.

I'm Brandis Friedman in Chicago.

JOHN YANG: One of Last month's graduates James Jimmy Soto walked out of prison a free man this week after he was exonerated.

He had spent 42 years in prison and is now in his 60s.