The study rested on the author’s experiences teaching economics and financial management courses at Westville Correctional Facility in Westville, IN, and at Purdue University North Central for more than 10 years. The analysis focused on economics courses due to their use of a cognitive problem-solving approach that can strengthen thinking skills and lead to improved decision making. The research used pretests and posttests with a nationally standardized test. The tests covered 10 content categories in microeconomics and macroeconomics and emphasized skills that went beyond recall and memorization. The study used a table of specifications to ensure congruence between the test and classroom instructions. Results revealed no significant performance differences between inmates and regional campus students. Both groups of students were comparable to the national norm in that they had adequate thinking skills that led to effective decision making in economics. Findings suggested that inmate educational programs can be effective even with complex topics such as economics. Tables and 12 references