Retired Albany educator makes an impact as jail school instructor

Benjamin Johnson demonstrates the solutions to math problems during a recent teaching session at the Dougherty County Jail. The retired educator started instructing inmates through Albany Technical College’s adult education program earlier this year.

Staff Photo: Alan Mauldin

ALBANY – In an education career that spanned three decades, Benjamin Johnson held a number of titles: math teacher, assistant principal and wrestling coach among them. 

Now, the retired educator can add one more title, that of instructor to Dougherty County Jail inmates working to get their General Educational Development credentials.

After retiring in 2023, Johnson, 56, returned to Albany after leaving to coach wrestling at Stephenson  High School in Stone Mountain, and signed on part-time to teach GED classes at Albany Technical College.

Shortly after taking office in January 2025, Dougherty County Sheriff Terron Hayes initiated the  “Jail to Jobs” program that helps students prepare for the GED exams, and Johnson was tapped as the inaugural instructor. It was not an appointment that he expected or for which he was consulted.

He had imagined that he would just teach math to students who were pursuing a technical education while they were also working and raising families instead of being thrust in front of a – literally – captive audience.

Albany Tech officials had another role in mind.

“I wasn’t volunteered; I was ‘volun-told,’” Johnson said. “I went from doing that to being assigned to the jail. It was like night and day. It was a whole different world.”

As the instructor at the jail, Johnson helps his students, dressed in orange or black- and white-striped jumpsuits, through the process of passing the math, science, social studies, and reading and language arts portions of the GED exam. 

“Some of these guys haven’t been in class in 10 years,” Johnson said. “When they were there, they were usually getting in trouble, getting suspended. They never realized their potential.”

Through his experience so far in the Jail to Jobs program, which has held graduation ceremonies this year for five inmates who successfully met the GED test requirements, the educator said that the students who come to his classes are there to learn, not because they want a few hours break from their jail routines.

A few students have been removed from the program for missing three sessions, as Johnson wants to reserve the limited opportunity for students who want to learn, but those occasions have been rare. Most of the students have been eager to use the chance to learn.

“They are motivated, determined, ready to get finished,” Johnson said. “What I like about Sheriff Hayes’ program, he’s giving them a chance. When you’re locked up, you’re like a captive audience. You’re coming.”

The students have ranged in age from 18 to a recent new participant who is 44.

“I even had a father and a son,” Johnson said.

In addition to the GED component, Jail to Jobs allows students to become certified in forklift driving. Most of the five students who have received GEDs so far have completed or were working on their forklift certifications.

Working with students who are in jail facing felony charges, including armed robbery and aggravated assault, the veteran educator said that he is optimistic that some of them will take advantage of the opportunity offered by the program. 

A jail employee sits in the classes to provide security, but Johnson said his experience has been positive.

“You’re dealing with people who are facing serving time in prison,” he said. “As a teacher, you’re always looking for a happy ending. I think there’s hope in every situation.

“What I’ve also learned is a lot of them don’t have money for court or an attorney. Because of their financial home life, they can’t get a speedy hearing. They’ve got to wait for a public defender to get a court date.”

Given different circumstances in their lives, Johnson said, he could see a different outcome where some of them become honors students in their college class, not waiting in a jail cell for weeks or months for a court date. 

One of the two students who completed the GED requirements in October, Justin Gibson, was the class cut-up who mastered math to the point that Johnson let him teach class on occasion. 

“One of my favorite students in there, who graduated last week, was in for three felonies, for entering autos,” Johnson said. “Every day he was making jokes, laughing. You would think somebody facing prison for three felonies, he would not come to class with a positive attitude. 

“He was joking, making people feel good about themselves, basically having the attitude of you can do this (class) with a smile on your face. He had them cracking up. I loved that kid. He made my day every day.”

One struggle for the educator is not becoming too attached to his students and keeping in mind that they are people who have been charged with sometimes serious crimes.

“It’s hard,” he said. “They get to be your friend. We’re still human beings, regardless of circumstances.

“It’s a tough, tough job. It’s unlike being in the school system. One thing I can say, it’s very interesting. The stories they tell you about what goes on behind bars … I can’t tell you, but it’s crazy. We’re having a good time in here until 11 (a.m.). Then at 11, the jailers come and take them back to their cells.”

The accomplishment of successfully passing the GED exam also can be an influencing factor during sentencing in court, Johnson said.

All Dougherty County inmates are assigned a tablet PC on which some instructional material is available online, but it is fairly limited, Johnson said. The GED course work is decidedly low-tech.

“We do it the old-fashioned way: book, paper, pencil; no computers, no tablets,” he said. “Math has to be practiced. In my opinion, math is something you have to practice every day … like riding a bike. If they practice every day, by the time they take the test they’ll be good.”

The cost for the program, including GED testing, is not borne by taxpayers but is paid through outside funding sources, including donations, the sheriff said. Individuals interested in assisting can call the sheriff’s office and ask to speak with Marie Ostrander.

Johnson has demonstrated an ability to work with the inmates, Hayes said.

“He has developed a strong passion for it,” the sheriff said of Johnson. “He gets so excited when they pass their test. These young men are ambitious and want to learn more and put themselves in a better situation. Albany Tech has provided the resources to make it happen for us.”

Jail to Jobs has been meeting expectations so far, the sheriff said.

“As long as I’m sheriff, I plan to have this program for young men and young women to get a better understanding of life and that there is something out there (for them),” he said.

During a recent class, Johnson demonstrated math answers on a white board to seven students who seemed engaged in the instruction. 

Among them was Walterious Brown, 26, who said his education ended in the eighth grade. Brown, 26, who is in jail awaiting disposition of an aggravated assault case, said his goal is to become a truck driver. 

So far, he has passed the science portion of the GED test and is working on language arts, math and social studies. He also completed the forklift training this month.

“I took GED classes to have a better job and to have a better education when I get out on the street,” he said. “And to help my family and (2-year-old) daughter.

“This will help me stay out of trouble and help me get a better job. It taught me a lot of maturity in life. Mr. Johnson is a great teacher.”