The purpose of this article is to connect theories Austin MacCormick discussed in his 1931 book "The Education of Adult Prisoners" with examples from modern correctional education practice. The author began teaching an institutional plumbing class in 2000, equipped with an undergraduate degree in elementary education and a master's degree in vocational/adult education, and 22 years of experience as a plumber. I have never had any formal education in correctional education. MacCormick's book was my first exposure to that field; his genius inspired me to write this article. I implemented some of his ideas in actual, working programs for men and women at county jails in New York State and at a Rescue Mission drug rehabilitation program in Syracuse. The results have included high graduation rates and assignment of former students in entry level plumbing jobs. Collected and treated research data on the program began with its inception. It is my charge as a correctional vocational education teacher to connect Austin MacCormick's theories with the programs I manage. My hope is that, through this article, some interested correctional educators will benefit from a consideration of MacCormick's ideas and an explanation of how they were applied in these 21st century programs. In other words, the article contributes to the process of generally updating his theories to modern conditions, I extend special thanks to Elizabeth Curley for clerical support, Cindi Malone Jones for logistical help, Anne Jakowenko for all the useful advice, Thom Gehring for the editorial assistance, and Isabel Hunsinger for the 1997 article she contributed to "The Journal of Correctional Education" to begin the important process of scrutinizing and updating MacCormick's definitive ideas on our field.