A professor at the Borough of Manhattan Community College is researching how contact with the criminal justice system affects career options, with an eye toward increasing access, specifically in the human services arena.
Dr. Lisa H. Rose, an associate professor and program coordinator of human services at the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), says that she finds teaching in a community college fascinating given the incredible diversity of the students. In the two decades that she has worked full time in academia, her research has mostly centered on community college students.
“Each time I advise a student and meet with a student individually or talk with students in the classroom, I’m thinking about what their experiences are and how that helps or hinders them in the college experience,” says Rose, who worked as a social worker for 15 years before coming to BMCC.
Different issues come to the surface. One semester, it was homelessness, as a number of the students in a course were homeless and struggling to come to class. Another time, several students were victims of domestic violence. Recently, Rose had three students in one class who had faced contact with the criminal justice system.
“There were problems with getting them internships, roadblocks we hadn’t anticipated,” she says.
The issue seemed extremely salient, as many formerly incarcerated students appear to have gravitated to careers in human services, especially social work.
The human services program is designed to prepare students for careers that focus on helping people solve problems and live more satisfying lives. Rose began exploring the research and found there was very little on community college students who have been incarcerated and the obstacles they face and virtually nothing specific to human services and social work.
