By Kassel Pierre-Jean

As hundreds of applications crossed the desks of the University’s Law School admissions in 1992, one student’s credentials could not be ignored.

Unfortunately, Michael Santos had one minor setback.

He was a convicted felon behind bars.

Determined to earn an education against incredible odds, Santos completed his bachelor’s degree, cum laude, from Mercer University while incarcerated in the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta for cocaine trafficking.

At 21, when many his age are working toward a degree from a higher institution, Santos began selling cocaine in his Seattle hometown.

At 23 he was arrested and immediately indicted on charges of drug trafficking and additional charges of perjury. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison without parole for at least 27 years.

When Santos began serving his sentence at a maximum-security prison in Atlanta, he recognized his poor judgments and foolish decisions.

According to the website MichaelSantos.net, which his wife, Carole, maintains on his behalf, he said, “I realized that in order to overcome the obstacles that my poor decisions had placed before me, I would need to develop my mind and earn academic credentials that people in society would recognize, accept and respect.”

Santos sent letters to every American Bar Association school in the nation in an attempt to establish himself as a candidate for an experimental correspondence program. Each school wrote back, denying him because all law students were required to engage in on-campus study.

However, the University’s Law School tried something different to give Santos a hopeful shot in furthering his education.

The Law School forwarded Santos’s letter to Professor Al Cohen of the New College. Cohen notified Santos that he would not be able to obtain a law degree through the college, but the University would be willing to allow him the opportunity to study for a master’s degree in interdisciplinary studies.

David Christman, dean of the New College, reviewed Santos’s application and did not see any reason why the University should not accept him.

“We looked at his application and didn’t know until afterwards that he was an incarcerated prisoner that could not set foot on campus,” Christman said. “He’s a bright and committed student.”

Senior Axinn Library Annex staff member Assistant Debbie Willett recalled interacting with graduate student Michael Santos.

“He was intelligent and came from a wonderful family,” Willett said. “He’s a good person with a good heart.”

The University does not have any correspondence courses set in place for either graduate or undergraduate programs. In fact, all programs at the University require students to study on campus. However, Santos’s qualifications impressed Christman enough to waive the residency requirement.

“The news encouraged me,” Santos said in his short essay, My Experience with Hofstra. “I really needed to distinguish myself, to prove to my family (and myself) that I was more than just a prisoner, and the opportunity to earn a graduate degree felt like a step in the right direction.”

Willett worked in the Axinn Library in 1995 and kept in regular contact with Santos, sending him his textbooks for study and research.

“When Michael signed up to do his master’s, I was glad to help him out. I sent him books and I never had trouble getting them back,” Willett recalled. “I’ve never had contact with a prisoner before, but after such a positive experience, I wouldn’t be reluctant to do it again.”

Santos, through Cohen’s help, created an independent study program concentrated on the federal prison system and those located behind prison walls.

He received his master’s degree in 1995, but Santos’s experience through the University has provided him with more than just academic benefit.

“I had the good fortune of developing relationships with several members of [the University’s] faculty,” Santos said. “My studies [through the University] were an enriching experience for me, contributing significantly to my growth as a human being.”

Christman said that no other incarcerated prisoner had been able to qualify for an independent study program through the University.

“It was a risk we took with him and it was well taken,” Christman said.

The University of Connecticut accepted Santos into their doctoral program and Santos has completed part of the coursework in obtaining his Ph.D. in political science. However, to finish his degree, he must complete that one haunting requirement: residency.

Santos had worked for his family’s lucrative highway construction firm and as vice-president, had access to the company bank account when he began trafficking cocaine.

A high school friend, whom Santos calls Alex, introduced him to the cocaine industry-a business that involved thousands of dollars in fast cash. Santos stole some of the company money and joined his new business partner in purchasing three kilograms of cocaine. He made enough of a profit to replace the money he’d taken from the company and split a profit of $40,000 with Alex.

Santos never used drugs: buying and selling cocaine were ways for him to earn a lavish style of living.

Two years later, Santos relocated to a multimillion-dollar waterfront condominium in Key Biscayne, Fla. and earned a six-figure profit while overseeing cocaine transactions in Seattle.

One day Santos arrived home to police waiting to arrest him.

Carole, though, considers herself lucky to be married to the reformed cocaine dealer.

“He is the most extraordinary person,” she said. “He’s got a character about him-depth, integrity, his self-discipline-he holds himself to such high standards. He challenges people to hold him accountable for who he is today, not for who he was 20 years ago.”

Michael Santos had three books published that focused on detailing the prison system and what goes on inside. He has written a number of articles and essays featured in the New York Times, The Seattle Times, USA Today and a story featured in Chicken Soup for the Prisoner’s Soul. He is currently writing a fourth book tentatively titled Living In Prison: The Vicious Cycle.

He is scheduled for release in 2013.