Senior Experience: Developing a curriculum

I am helping to develop the curriculum for a new class called Theories of Punishment to be taught by Ms. González next year by drawing from texts written by leaders in the criminal justice and restorative justice fields.

What’s your personal story or the motivation to work on this, and how does it connect to your Beaver experience?

Criminal justice has always been a passion of mine, however, this past winter I had the opportunity to take a deep dive into the subject in my classes. All within the same term I took Theories of Justice, wrote an independent research paper on the racism weaved throughout American drug policy in the Independent Research class, and read Just Mercy in my English course — a book that discusses the discriminatory and overly-punitive nature of the criminal justice system. I had originally planned to intern with a judge at the Massachusetts Superior Courthouse, however, when those plans fell through, Ms. González reached out to me and offered me this opportunity. This project has been the perfect way to wrap up my 7 years at Beaver — exploring a passion I found at Beaver while being mentored by a faculty member that I have known and admired since 6th grade.

I have been compiling all my work and thoughts on a document outlining the course structure. I can send it along if you’d like, however, it’s pretty boring and not exactly polished work. If you need visuals, I can send photos of the books I have been reading. Unfortunately, my work won’t really become visible until the class is offered at Beaver in the Spring of next year.

Books:
- the new jim crow by michelle alexander
- until we reckon by danielle seder
- chokehold by paul butler
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
Course description
- What aspects of culture and politics promote criminal justice reform? How can the United States achieve an effective justice system that protects public safety while also confronting issues related to restoration for those impacted by crime, both the victim and the accused? Is the prison industrial complex used by the government and industry to address social, political and economic challenges? In this course, students are introduced to criminology and penology. Students will examine historical trends, current programs related to reform, and examine the psychological impact and role that poverty, lack of mental health services, addiction, trauma, and education has had on the lives of incarcerated people. They will participate in forums led by people whose work or volunteerism is connected to addressing existing issues within the system and engage in field-based experiences. Students will explore topics of choice and design viable solutions.