FCI Beaumont Low was the first institution to open on the Beaumont federal complex in Jefferson County, Texas, beginning operations in 1996, a year or two ahead of the medium-security and high-security prisons later added on the same site. As the low-security tier, it houses male inmates in dormitory-style units rather than individual cells, generally holding somewhere around 1,500 to 2,000 people. Programming leans toward preparing inmates for release, with GED and adult education classes, vocational training, drug treatment programming, and coursework through a nearby community college, along with recreational activities suited to a lower-security population. It has not been entirely free of problems over the years — there have been isolated cases of staff misconduct and at least one reported escape — but it does not carry the same difficult reputation as its higher-security neighbors on the same complex, which have seen more serious violence. For families, the main thing to keep in mind is that "Beaumont" by itself doesn't specify which of the three co-located institutions a loved one is in; Low, Medium, and USP sit close together but operate as separate facilities with their own visiting procedures.