--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It costs the same to send a person to…" description: "\"It costs the same to send a person to prison or to Harvard. The difference is the curriculum.\" — Paul Hawken" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f53/paul-hawken-3831_cost_it-costs-the-same-to-send-a-person-to-pr_2514320.png" --- # It costs the same to send a person to prison or to… ![“It costs the same to send a person to prison or to Harvard. The difference is the curriculum.” quote by Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f53/paul-hawken-3831_cost_it-costs-the-same-to-send-a-person-to-pr_2514320.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f53/paul-hawken-3831_cost_it-costs-the-same-to-send-a-person-to-pr_2514320.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f53/paul-hawken-3831_cost_it-costs-the-same-to-send-a-person-to-pr_2514320.png) > “It costs the same to send a person to prison or to Harvard. The difference is the curriculum.” [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights that the cost of incarceration and elite education is similar, but the content taught differs dramatically, leading to divergent life outcomes. **In simple terms:** Money spent is similar, but learning differs, shaping futures. Key Takeaway Invest in meaningful curricula for all. Themes education justice inequality social mobility Mood critical reflective Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - prison reform - school funding - career counseling - community programs Key Concepts curriculum design systemic disparity human capital Questions to Reflect On - How can curricula be reformed to empower incarcerated individuals? - What policies can equalize educational quality? A Different Perspective The quote assumes equal cost, which may not hold across regions and institutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Curriculum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curriculum/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) ## Related quotes > [There is no cost difference between incarceration and an Ivy League education; the main difference is curriculum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/there-is-no-cost-difference-between-incarceration-and-an-ivy-league/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [It is all one to me if a man comes from Sing Sing Prison or Harvard. We hire a man, not his history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/it-is-all-one-to-me-if-a-man-comes-from-sing-sing-prison-or-harvard/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [“He was like a man who had served a term in prison or had been to Harvard College or had lived for a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-mccullers/he-was-like-a-man-who-had-served-a-term-in-prison-or-had-been-to-2/) [Carson McCullers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-mccullers/) > [“He was like a man who had served a term in prison or had been to Harvard College or had left for a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-mccullers/he-was-like-a-man-who-had-served-a-term-in-prison-or-had-been-to/) [Carson McCullers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-mccullers/) > [Everybody is unique. Compare not yourself with anybody else lest you spoil God's curriculum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baal-shem-tov/everybody-is-unique-compare-not-yourself-with-anybody-else-lest-you/) [Baal Shem Tov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baal-shem-tov/) > [I do believe that when your child does poorly on a test, your first step should not necessarily be to attack the teacher or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-chua/i-do-believe-that-when-your-child-does-poorly-on-a-test-your-first/) [Amy Chua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-chua/) > [I would argue that the charter schools are really good at building programming and curriculum around the issues and the interests of the kids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-baker/i-would-argue-that-the-charter-schools-are-really-good-at-building/) [Charlie Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-baker/) > [In some suburban schools, the curriculum is chock-full of rigorous A.P. courses and the parking lot glitters with pricey SUVs, but one doesn't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfie-kohn/in-some-suburban-schools-the-curriculum-is-chock-full-of-rigorous-a-p/) [Alfie Kohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfie-kohn/) > [A strong accountability system needs to broaden, not narrow, the curriculum. That cannot happen if you only have accountability without adequate school funding. Until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-gelber/a-strong-accountability-system-needs-to-broaden-not-narrow-the/) [Dan Gelber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-gelber/) > [The school curriculum today, particularly American history, is a shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-school-curriculum-today-particularly-american-history-is-a-shame/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [To change the media, you're gonna have to totally throw out every journalism school and get rid of everybody in every newsroom, and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/to-change-the-media-you-re-gonna-have-to-totally-throw-out-every/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The unfortunate, yet truly exciting thing about your life, is that there is no core curriculum. The entire place is an elective.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/the-unfortunate-yet-truly-exciting-thing-about-your-life-is-that/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [They don't really focus on that history here in America. I remember growing up as a kid, history class was very washed-over. They didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldis-hodge/they-don-t-really-focus-on-that-history-here-in-america-i-remember/) [Aldis Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldis-hodge/) > [Love is the supreme form of communication. In the hierarchy of needs, love stands as the supreme developing agent of the humanity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-montagu/love-is-the-supreme-form-of-communication-in-the-hierarchy-of-needs/) [Ashley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-montagu/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) ## More by Paul Hawken > [Information from destructive activities going back a hundred years right up until today is being incorporated into the system. And as that happens the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/information-from-destructive-activities-going-back-a-hundred-years/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [When the planes still swoop down and aerial spray a field in order to kill a predator insect with pesticides, we are in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/when-the-planes-still-swoop-down-and-aerial-spray-a-field-in-order-to/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [The great thing about the dilemma we're in is that we get to re-imagine every single thing we do...There isn't a single thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/the-great-thing-about-the-dilemma-we-re-in-is-that-we-get-to-re/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Luck is earned. Luck is working so hard at your craft, service or enterprise that sooner or later you get a break.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/luck-is-earned-luck-is-working-so-hard-at-your-craft-service-or/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Healing the wounds of the earth and its people does not require saintliness or a political party, only gumption and persistence. 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