This story will catch the attention of those who plan to attend college but have had run-ins, even minor ones, with the law. In Al's Morning Meeting, Poynter's Al Tompkins writes about how violence on campus is prompting colleges to look for criminal activity in an applicant's background. If you can't find students who will talk to you about their skirmishes with police, perhaps a recent graduate can put the issue in perspective for you.Here's an exercept from Tompkins' column:
High school seniors nationwide are in full-throttle college application mode right now.
The Los Angeles Times says
high school seniors who have had legal troubles, even minor run-ins,
have plenty to worry about when applying for college this year.
Colleges, increasingly, are probing deeper into a student's legal past
as an indicator of how the student might act in college. The paper says
the shootings at Virginia Tech are one reason schools are more vigilant
this year.
The Times reports:
Last
year, [the Common Application] began asking students -- and their
counselors -- about any suspensions, dismissals or probationary terms
because of academic or behavioral misconduct and whether students had
been "convicted of a misdemeanor, felony or other crime." The
applicants are encouraged to explain the incidents. College admissions
counselors realize that "not every 17-year-old is a perfect human
being," said Seth Allen, president-elect of the
Common Application,
the nonprofit organization that administers the form. But a campus
should know about infractions -- even juvenile records that may have
been expunged -- so it can decide whether students should "be part of
our community," he said.
In the past, less than about half of
Common Application members asked similar questions on separate
applications, estimated Allen, who is also dean of admission and
financial aid at Grinnell College in Iowa. Schools wanted the questions
added to the shared application because, in general, institutions "are
being held to a greater standard of accountability," he said.
A
tiny amount of applicants confessed. Of the 266,087 students who used
the Common Application last year, only 2.32% said they received school
discipline, and only about 0.25% reported a conviction.
