SCI Benner Township
The State Correctional Institution at Benner Township is a $200 million state-of-the-art facility that was officially dedicated by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett on April 1, 2013. SCI Benner Township is a medium-security facility that houses adult male inmates. It sits on 46 acres and features 10 housing units. SCI Benner Township is designated as a Mental Health Stability Code D Facility.
Approximately 1,400 inmates are employed inside the facility, 319 inmates are Code D, and 81 are enrolled in vocational education.
SCI Benner Township operates the Centralized Transportation HUB for the Department of Corrections. All inmate transfers are coordinated through the Office of Population Management.
Prison Insights
SCI Benner Township
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Visiting Hours and Rules
Visiting Days/Times at SCI Benner Township:
Monday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday: 8:30 am to 3:30 pm
Tuesday | Wednesday: CLOSED
MAX Number of Visitors per Inmate: 5 (includes children)
Vending Machine: Vending Card (no cash allowed in the visiting room. Vending card must be purchased in the lobby)
Visiting Rules
- Vehicles must be locked while on prison property. Windows must be rolled up/closed.
- NEVER bring any gifts or money for the inmate. This must be done through JPay. Prisons will NOT accept money to be placed on an inmate’s account.
- Cell phones and/or pagers are not permitted inside the SCIs.
- Any kind of device that has the capability of audio and/or video/photography recording and/or cell phone capabilities is NOT permitted.
- No purses, bags, diaper bags, etc.
- Unused visits per week may not be carried over into the following week. It’s a, “use them or lose them,” rule.
- At most facilities, lockers are available for use. Some lockers may require a deposit ranging from 25 cents to $10. Items not permitted in the visiting room should either be left in your vehicle or placed in the locker. All vehicles and lockers are subject to search.
Video Visitation
Video visitation is a free service offered to inmates at SCI Benner Township. The visiting rules for video visitation are generally the same as those for visiting in the facility.
To sign up and schedule a visit, check out the visitation scheduler system.
For complete details, read the Video Visitation Visitors Guide.Physical Address
SCI Benner Township
301 Institution Drive
Bellefonte, PA 16823
Driving Directions: https://goo.gl/maps/Uuoj5RWvn2ds1HrY7
General Phone Number
(814) 353-3630
Inmate Mailing Address(es)
Smart Communications/PADOC
SCI Benner Township
Inmate Name, Inmate Number
PO Box 33028
St Petersburg, FL 33733
How to Call an Inmate
Inmates at SCI Benner Township can’t receive incoming phone calls, but they do have access to phones during certain hours. For complete details on how to call an inmate in Pennsylvania, please click here.
How to Send Money
The Department of Corrections (DOC) uses JPay for the processing of ALL MONEY ORDERS sent to inmates in all Pennsylvania correctional institutions and all online and over-the-phone credit card transactions.
Family and friends must deposit money into an inmate's account through JPay, either online or through lobby kiosks at each individual state prison.
DO NOT send money to any other individual, website, or Email account. Money orders are NOT accepted at any state correctional institutions.
For JPay information, call 800.574.5729
JPay Frequently Asked Questions Information Sheet (pdf)
Money Orders
A Deposit Slip MUST be filled out and submitted with EVERY money order. Slips are available at the money order section of the JPay website, visiting rooms and the DOC's website.
DEPOSIT SLIP (pdf)
DEPOSIT SLIP (pdf) (Spanish)
ALL money order deposit slips MUST have the following information CLEARLY TYPED in order for the funds to be posted to the inmate account: Handwritten forms are subject to delay.
• Correct inmate ID #
• Inmate name
• Sender’s name and address
Programs For Inmates
Academic Programs
- Adult Basic Education/General Education Development
- Pre-Vocational
- Money Smart
- Read To Your Children
- Post-Secondary Education/Correspondence Classes
- Vocational Education
- Custodial Maintenance
- Plumbing
- Electricity
- Carpentry
- Business Education
- Barber Shop
- Additional Education Services
- General and Law Library
- Plumbing, Electricity and Carpentry are provided certificates through NCCER/CORE. Inmates that complete the Barber Shop Program, receive a license.
Inmate Programs
- Family/Relationship/Self
- Sex Offender
- Reentry
- Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD)
- Offense Related
- Mental Health
- Medical Care
The Medical Department provides all medical and mental health services to the inmate population. SCI Benner Township is equipped with a 19-bed infirmary that provides sub-acute hospital care with daily physician’s rounds. A four-bed Psychiatric Observation Unit is available for use for inmates in need of crisis intervention or suicide intervention. A complete range of dental services is available including dental prosthetics.
Religious Services
SCI Benner Township provides weekly Catholic, Islamic, Jehovah’s Witness, Jewish, Native American and Protestant Services. In addition to these services, the appropriate feasts and fasts of each faith are provided at the appointed times. The Religious Department oversees and coordinates the institution’s volunteer services.
Activities Department
SCI Benner Township provides an array of structured activities as well as pre-scheduled non-structured recreation periods. Structured activity is provided in the indoor gymnasium as well as the main yard area, weather permitting. Programs include intramural basketball, volleyball, flag football, small games, board games, cardio-vascular fitness programs, weight training programs and circuit training programs. Specialized programming is provided for the Special Needs Unit and for men in the age range of 40-50 years of age.
Correctional Industries
The SCI Benner Township laundry, under the management of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Correctional Industries employs approximately 116 inmate laundry workers and is responsible for providing complete laundry services for more than ten SCI's and two state hospitals in Pennsylvania.
Pictures of SCI Benner Township
Careers at SCI Benner Township
If you are interested in a career with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, you can find out more information about available jobs at SCI Benner Township by clicking here.
