Inviting Convicts to College
Convict Criminology
Fall 2012 Syllabus
Instructors: Hannah Kirk, Keli Blatz, Kristina Deibert, and James Wetzel
Class: Friday’s 2:00-4:00 pm
Text: Ross, J.I. and Richards, S.C. (2003). Convict Criminology. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth
Ross, J.I. and Richards, S.C. (2009). Beyond Bars. Ney York, NY: Alpha
Course Goals and Objective:
We hope as your instructors to give you a better understanding of the field of Convict Criminology. It is one in which we will be taking a look at many controversial topics such as the “revolving door policy”, overcrowding, and lack of rehabilitation, among others. The contributors of these two books have all had a great deal of experience within the Criminal Justice and Correctional Systems. Our goal is to peak your interest and allow you the ability to comfortably express yourself on these topics in a respectful environment.
As this is a college preparation course, we will help you by talking about the college application process and financial aid steps. We also want to make this class emulate a college course as best we can, so while we are very open to views and other expressed opinions, it is important to get through the curriculum. At the end of the course and when all the material is complete, you will be presented with a certificate from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. (Reminder: While this is a college level course, you will not receive any college credit for this course)
When the course is over, we all hope that we will have helped to intrigue you into furthering your studies. We also feel that with your contribution to the class using your experiences, we can all learn a great deal. In the future we hope to learn a great deal more about the field of Convict Criminology with the studies and academic pursuits of students like you. We all are excited to hear from you and what you have to contribute to our discussions.
Course Expectations:
Homework/Attendance: It is vital for you to come to class prepared so that we can have a good discussion. This means that all readings should be completed before class begins and hand in any assignments on the date that they are due. It is very important to attend each class so as to maximize what you get out of class. Excused absences will be allowed, however, please provide us with this information as soon as it is available. (Ex. Court date, Illness, Doctor, etc.). More than two excused (Barring extenuating circumstances) and any unexcused absences will result in failure of and removal from the course.
Participation: Participation and respect is required. We want everyone to be able to speak and not feel judged. In saying, everyone should feel comfortable speaking in front of the class. Please be respectful and let others have a chance to get their opinions out. All opinions are welcome as long as they are relevant to the class and the current topic. If someone does get out of hand, they will be asked to leave the class room.
All grades will be based on the following grading scale:
Percent: Course Grade:
95-100 A
90-94 A/B
85-89 B
80-84 B/C
75-79 C
70-74 C/D
60-69 D
0-59 F
Course Schedule: (This is a tentative schedule and is subject to change)
Friday 9/21 Introduction to course
HW: Read Beyond Bars, and write a brief Summary on the book
HW: Convict Criminology: Chapter 1
Friday 9/28 Discuss Reading
HW: Convict Criminology: Chapters 2-4
Friday 10/5 Discuss Reading/Collect Beyond Bars Summary/Review for Exam 1
HW: Study for Exam 1
Friday 10/12 Exam 1/Talk about term paper/APA formatting
HW: Prepare questions for guest speaker
Friday 10/19 Guest Speaker (Stephen Richards)/Begin Application process
HW: Convict Criminology: Chapters 5-7
Friday 10/26 Discuss Reading/Start term paper intro paragraph
HW: Convict Criminology: Chapters 8-10
HW: Finalize intro paragraph and begin term paper
Friday 11/2 Discuss Reading/Work on term papers/Review for Exam 2
HW: Study for Exam 2
Friday 11/9 Exam 2
HW: Finalize term paper
Friday 11/16 Discuss Reading/Term papers Due
HW: Convict Criminology: Chapters 11-16
Friday 11/23 Thanksgiving Break!
Friday 11/30 Review for Final Exam/Exam 3
HW: Prepare questions for guest speaker
Friday 12/7 Guest Speaker (Michael Lenza)/Commencement