Carole Willis Criminal Justice Reform Scholarship

Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement (CAIC) would like to honor and remember one of our dear members Carole Willis, who recently passed away at the age of 79. A lifelong New Yorker, Carole was a wonderful, caring, and giving person who had a beautiful heart and soul. Carole was actively involved with CAIC and the Correctional Association of NY for the last several years, and her son Nicholas Zimmerman spent over a decade in solitary confinement.

Carole was a fierce advocate and committed campaign member. She participated in numerous meetings with legislators, multiple advocacy days in Albany, and various community events, including speaking on behalf of CAIC. Carole’s wholehearted dedication was truly inspiring. From making visits to such far away prisons as Attica and Clinton, often trekking from her home in Queens to Harlem and elsewhere for campaign meetings, to waking up before dawn to catch the buses going to Albany, Carole was amazing in her commitment and her strength. Even this year, Carole woke up at three in the morning in order to be on the buses to come up for our advocacy day for the HALT Solitary Confinement Act.

Apart from her efforts with CAIC and the CA, Carole was a missionary, family matriarch, a decades-long member of multiple helping professions, a lifelong learner, and much more. We are deeply grateful for having known Carole and for all of her efforts in support of the #HALTsolitary campaign. We will deeply miss her and her beautiful spirit, and we are sending much love to her family.

Any undergraduate student who is an underrepresented minority studying criminal justice or law in order to make a difference in the criminal justice system may apply for this scholarship.

To apply, tell us how you’re working to address an important social issue and how you plan to make an impact in criminal justice.