Felons in the Social Work
Educational Environment
Maggie Clark
York College
Felons in the Social Work
Educational Environment
When a person commits an offense that is legally classifiable as a felony, they lose certain rights and privileges that extend after the time that they serve their time for the offense. For example, a felon is no longer allowed to vote, serve on a jury, or apply to become a lawyer in many states (Penaloza, 2012). One of the professions that also follows this standard is the field of social work. For example, Youngstown State University (YSU) in Ohio indicates that while a qualified student with a past felony conviction may be admitted to their Master of Social Work program, they may have difficulty …show more content…
Not doing so is not only unfair, but it can expose the school to legal action. For example, the University of Alaska-Anchorage (UAA) website has an extensive section explaining their Master of Social Work degree program, but they do not disclose the fact that a felony conviction would render someone ineligible for the program (School of Social Work, 2015). As the ACLU (2005) explains, Michael Purcell, a UAA student found out, the school considers a prospective student’s felony background in admissions decisions, and as such they denied him admission into the program for a Bachelor of Social Work degree – solely due to his felony conviction. Students must apply to the Bachelor of Social Work degree program and be evaluated by the staff as to their completion of prerequisite work as well as the “professional judgement of the faculty” (ACLU, 2005, para. 3). After attending the school and getting good grades, and serving as President of the university Social Work Club, he applied to the program and was denied due to the felony status. The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) requires educators to clearly articulate requirements for the program, which would include if felons are blocked from applying (Magen & Emerman, …show more content…
When individuals are in those settings, frequently they are in a position of power and authority over vulnerable children and adults (Madoc-Jones, Bates, Facer, & Roscoe, 2007). As Madoc-Jones et al. (2007) explain, vulnerable children and adults have a right to be protected against individuals who may as a result of their past offenses be likely to abuse a position of
Educational Environment
Maggie Clark
York College
Felons in the Social Work
Educational Environment
When a person commits an offense that is legally classifiable as a felony, they lose certain rights and privileges that extend after the time that they serve their time for the offense. For example, a felon is no longer allowed to vote, serve on a jury, or apply to become a lawyer in many states (Penaloza, 2012). One of the professions that also follows this standard is the field of social work. For example, Youngstown State University (YSU) in Ohio indicates that while a qualified student with a past felony conviction may be admitted to their Master of Social Work program, they may have difficulty …show more content…
Not doing so is not only unfair, but it can expose the school to legal action. For example, the University of Alaska-Anchorage (UAA) website has an extensive section explaining their Master of Social Work degree program, but they do not disclose the fact that a felony conviction would render someone ineligible for the program (School of Social Work, 2015). As the ACLU (2005) explains, Michael Purcell, a UAA student found out, the school considers a prospective student’s felony background in admissions decisions, and as such they denied him admission into the program for a Bachelor of Social Work degree – solely due to his felony conviction. Students must apply to the Bachelor of Social Work degree program and be evaluated by the staff as to their completion of prerequisite work as well as the “professional judgement of the faculty” (ACLU, 2005, para. 3). After attending the school and getting good grades, and serving as President of the university Social Work Club, he applied to the program and was denied due to the felony status. The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) requires educators to clearly articulate requirements for the program, which would include if felons are blocked from applying (Magen & Emerman, …show more content…
When individuals are in those settings, frequently they are in a position of power and authority over vulnerable children and adults (Madoc-Jones, Bates, Facer, & Roscoe, 2007). As Madoc-Jones et al. (2007) explain, vulnerable children and adults have a right to be protected against individuals who may as a result of their past offenses be likely to abuse a position of