The Difficulties of Seeking Higher Education in the United States with a Criminal Record

The teacher says, “I’ve never been arrested since I’ve been in school.”

Currently, universities across the country do not permit admission to those with a criminal record. Even non-violent individuals who have made a mistake, paid their debt to society, and seek higher education face obstacles. Educators and the US government are advocating for change.

In 2009, the Center for Community Alternatives surveyed 2,248 educational institutions. Out of the 273 respondents, it found that 66% of these colleges collect criminal justice information. Although not all consider it in their admissions process, most universities show a concern for those society labels criminals.

Without education, it is challenging for individuals to reenter the workforce and turn their lives around. According to the Department of Justice, a third of released prisoners find themselves rearrested within six months, 56.7% by the end of the first year, 67.8% within three years, and 76.6% within five years.

How can we reduce these numbers? To address this question, I spoke with Aaron Carlton, an alternative education teacher in Santa Cruz, CA. He said, “Education is key in reducing recidivism among those released.” Once a homeless drug addict, Carlton has a theft on his criminal record which prevented him from finding work before becoming a teacher. Carlton, who stole food when homeless and hungry, later turned his life around. He said, “If I hadn’t attended school, I probably would have two or three jobs, working 60 to 70 hours a week, earning no more than $12 an hour. I might even be back on the streets.”

Carlton shared an analogy regarding non-traditional students like himself. “Those with life experience are also well-suited for the classroom. My previous street experience bled into the classroom. Think of life experience as the crème filling in an Oreo cookie, and education as the two cookie parts that complete the Oreo. In life, without experience and just education, you’re nothing but the cookie’s shells. Add the crème filling and you become a whole, remarkable cookie. I brought plenty of applicable experience into the classroom.” Why, then, do universities fear admitting students with checkered pasts?

He questioned their fears, saying, “If someone has paid their debt to society and has benefited from the transformative process of education, I believe it demonstrates they can successfully face adversity. They just need a chance to experience the classroom.”

Even the U.S. government advocates change. In May 2016, the U.S. Secretary of Education penned a letter to “College and University Leaders”. It urged them to reconsider their application practices when asking prospective students about their criminal history. The Secretary stated that “few interventions can reduce recidivism, promote safety, and prepare people to lead lawful, productive lives like access to quality postsecondary education and training.”

Mr. Carlton had one last message for educators, “Sir or Madam, I tested into the 98th percentile of academics in grade school, and I began my criminal career very shortly after that due to emotional adversity, living situation, and finding the need to act out. It took me five years to graduate high school, and I became a homeless drug addict; nothing that you would want anywhere near your school. Being fortunate enough to have been gifted an opportunity at sobriety and to return to academia, I’ve found a great deal of self-esteem and worth through studying. I’ve been able to refine all of my experiences into an opportunity to give back to the society from which I once took. I know without a doubt, because I teach them already, that there are more people who are following in my footsteps. It is my hope that I can save them from dying, from burning their life to the ground, and have them get to school quicker than I did because the utensil used for academics never changed, even though I was using it for criminal activities. Once it became relevant for me to study, I never looked back. I’ve also never been arrested since I’ve been in school.”

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