Hello!

I've arranged a tour of MCF - Shakopee.  This is the only women's facility in the state of Minnesota.  It was built in 1986 and houses all female offeners who have been sentenced to prison.  The tour is scheduled for Thursday, August 13th, 2009 at 10:00am  You must be currently enrolled in or successfully completed the class Domestic Violence to attend.  Please send your full name, date of birth and driver's license number to rose.pogatshnik@rasmussen.edu by Wednesday, August 5th.  Space is limited!  Transportation is the responsibility of the student.

If you have any questions please contact Rose via email.

Rose Pogatshnik, CJ instructor at Rasmussen – St. Cloud, has coordinated a tour of MCF – St. Cloud.  This facility, often called the "Granite Palace" is a historical site, built in 1889, and is home to the second longest continuous wall, only second to the Great Wall of China.  It houses approximately 1000 inmates and is the intake processing center for the state of Minnesota .  It is a level 4 custody facility.  It also houses juveniles who have been adjudicated as adults. The daily inmate report provides detailed information about the inmates currently housed there.  

The tour is scheduled for Thursday, May 21st at 9:30am.  A prerequisite to attend the tour is to currently be enrolled in Introduction to Corrections or have successfully completed it.  A background check will be run on all attendees.  You may not attend if you are currently on an inmate visitors list or are currently on probation for ANY offense.  The tour will involve significant amounts of walking and climbing/descending stairs so attendees must be physically able. 

Space is limited so contact Rose at rose.pogatshnik@rasmussen.edu by May 10th to reserve your spot.  Include your full name, date of birth and driver's license number for the background check.  Transportation will be the responsibility of the student.  Please email Rose with any questions you may have!

Hello School of Justice Studies students!

Are you looking for a great opportunity to gain experience in the field while going to school?  Below is information about a great community resource that could be a good fit for you!  Please let me know if you have any questions.

Community Mentors

Central MN Re-Entry Project is a referral service that assists ex-prisoners in searching for

employment, housing, clothing, family services, and more. Individuals are needed to serve as

mentors to help motivate inmates. Through mentoring, volunteers will make a difference in an

inmate’s life by assisting them in developing trust, feeling cared about, and gaining a new

perspective. By connecting inmates with mentors and services that provide resources, these

individuals will be less likely to re-offend and be better citizens with bonds to the community.

Both men and women are needed to serve as mentors for individuals in Stearns, Sherburne,

Benton, and Morrison State of Minnesota Correction Facilities and county jails. Volunteers must fill out an application and provide references.

Contact Joseph Gibbons, Central MN Re-Entry Project at (320) 761-8133

When you work in the criminal justice system, do you know what it is like to be a "client" in the criminal justice system?  Should you know what it is like to be processed through the very system you work in?  Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran will be walking as an inmate through the Lake County Jail this week.  He will participate in jail activities not as the Sheriff, but as a "client".  What is the expression,  "you never know what it is like for someone else until you walk in another person shoes"?  Therefore, if you work with client offenders in the jail everyday, shouldn't you know what it is like to walk in their shoes through the criminal justice system?  The best way to learn the real perspective, and how systems and processed really work is to experience them yourself. Whether you are looking for a new job, or going to school for a new career, you should spend an hour, a day, a week doing that job.  Fieldwork and job shadowing should be a major part of your job hunt or education. 

Law and Order, CSI, The Shield - is this the “reality” of criminal justice? 

What about America’s Most Wanted and COPS? 

Robin Anderson states, “Such shows, with their manufactured atmospheres of immediacy and close attention to the grittier details of street life, also cross a thin line between entertainment and information. This has had serious ramifications for public policy, especially on matters relating to drugs and crime” (1994).  The thin line between reality and fiction of criminal justice affects those working in the criminal justice field. Both offenders, victims and professionals in criminal justice must adjust their expectations of the criminal justice process.

Therefore as students enter the study of criminal justice, what is one to expect?  Expectation is the lifeline and passion for those interested in criminal justice. The Rasmussen College Criminal Justice AAS Degree has built a foundation of “reality” throughout the program so students know what to expect in the field of criminal justice. 

In core courses like Criminal Law and Procedure, students observe a court process.  Whether it is an arraignment, jury selection or defense arguments, students see first hand what the court law and process is like within their jurisdiction. 

Introduction to Corrections allows students to tour a prison, visit a workhouse, or interview a probation officer, getting exposure to the real life expectations of the corrections system.  Students will not be chasing OJ down the California highway on their ride-along in Policing in America; however they will patrol and enforce the laws of that jurisdiction with police for a full tour of duty. 

During a student’s final quarter, enrolled in the course, Contemporary Issues in Criminal Justice, students can choose from a variety of fieldwork options in which to participate.  Whether it is advocating for victims rights in court, or serving as a juvenile justice case manager, students can enter the field in which they see themselves working for the criminal justice system. 

Rasmussen College allows students the opportunity to work first hand in the field while learning and facilitating their knowledge of criminal justice.  What you read in books and see on television is not always “reality”, experience reality first hand in the Rasmussen College Criminal Justice Program.

What do you think?