SECOND SHIFT · FROM THE FIELD
Garland, Texas · Braille transcription · Prison job training
Original reporting: Sarah Asch for NPR, September 20, 2026, and Texas Standard, September 22, 2026
Beverly North credits the Billman Braille Center, a transcription program inside a women’s prison in Gatesville, Texas, with giving her a career after prison. She was released in 2008 and now directs Visual Aid Volunteers, a braille transcription vendor in Garland, Texas, according to reporting by Sarah Asch that aired on NPR and ran on Texas Standard.
North told Asch that she had always depended on other people to take care of her and that what matters most now is standing on her own. NPR reports that she has hired several women from the Billman Center after their release. Texas Standard describes her as a leader in a network of former participants who help newly released women get their start in the field.
The center has run for more than 25 years. About 90 incarcerated women there transcribe textbooks and other material under contract; like most prison workers in Texas, they are not paid. North said professional transcribers, who are paid by the page, can earn from $45,000 to more than six figures a year. That range is her estimate, not an independently verified figure.
Demand for seats is high: the center drew more than 300 applications from women’s prisons statewide for 15 spots this year, Texas Standard reported.
Location Decision takeaway
Training built around a specialized, credentialed skill with steady demand can outlast a release date. North’s path also shows a second payoff: graduates who become employers can open doors for the next group coming home.
Second Shift tells the stories of people building what’s next through new skills, new careers and second chances. From the Field items are curated from credited reporting, with Location Decision’s perspective. Location Decision Originals are independently reported by our team.
Curated by Location Decision. Originally reported by Sarah Asch for NPR (September 20, 2026) and Texas Standard (September 22, 2026).