CONTACT INFORMATION
Dr. Thom Allena. Instructor Office Hrs.: M/W 1:30-2:30PM
Criminology & Justice Studies @ The Depot or by appointment
Department of Sociology Office #: BSS 534
Phone #: 707-826-4446 Email: tva23@humboldt.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION
What is crime? How do we measure the extent of crime? Is the image of crime we see in the media accurate? Why do some people engage in criminal activities while others do not? Why do crime rates differ between cities, regions, and countries, as well as over time? What is the most effective way to lower the incidence of crime? In this course we will address such questions from a sociological perspective. We will focus on the social context of crime and criminals, especially the causes, consequences, and solutions to criminal behavior.
In this course we will also explore the emerging theory and practices of community justice. Community justice, according to Karp and Clear (2002), refers to all variants of crime prevention and justice activities that explicitly include the community in their processes and set the enhancement of quality of community life as a goal. These approaches share a common core in that they address community-level outcomes by addressing short and long-term problem solving, restoring victims and communities following violations, strengthening community level outcomes and effectively reintegrating offenders.
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Instructor Expectations
The focus of our meetings will be to discuss the assigned reading. Therefore, you must have all of the reading completed, and be ready to speak about it, before each day’s meeting. You will get the most out of the discussion sections if you… keep up with and carefully read the assigned readings, come to class, participate in class discussions, have a sense of humor, keep an open mind, are interested in learning from others.

REQUIRED TEXTS AND OTHER READING
Berne and Messerschmidt. 2011. Criminology: A Sociological Approach, 6th Edition.
ISBN: 9780195394764. The textbook is available on reserve in the library.
Clear and Hamilton. 2011 Community Justice. 2 nd Edition. ISBN: 9780415780278.
Other Readings: All other assigned readings will be handed out in class or made available electronically via email or through HSU library ONCORES.
COURSE GOALS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this course you will have a sociological understanding of the nature of crime, the persons and actions that society has defined as criminal, the major theories that explain criminal behavior, and the weaknesses and strengths of alternative solutions to the problems of crime and criminal behavior. You should be able to demonstrate the following course learning outcomes, as well as progress toward final department and university-­­related learning outcomes:
Course Learning Outcomes
1.
Express a deeper understanding of the “reality” of crime as compared to the journalistic and ideological preconceived notions about crime.
2.
Reflect critically on your own social position and its relationship to patterned experiences of crime and social justice (e.g., race, class, gender, ability, sexual orientation and age).
3.
Analyze information to raise critical questions about public policies related to crime, and the foundations and assumptions upon which these policies are based.
4.
Understand important criminological issues such as crime measurement, patterns of crime, and basic theories of crime causation.
Department Learning Outcomes
1. Think critically about social justice efforts and inequalities in communities and environments.
University Learning Outcomes
HSU graduates will have demonstrated:
1.
Effective communication through written and oral modes.
2.
Critical and creative thinking skills in acquiring a broad base of knowledge and applying it to complex issues.
3.
Competence in a major area of study.
4.
Appreciation and understanding of an expanded world perspective by engaging respectfully with diverse individuals, communities and viewpoints.
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HSU graduates will be prepared to:
1.
Succeed in their chosen careers.
2.
Take responsibility for identifying personal goals and practicing lifelong learning.
3.
Pursue social justice, promote environmental responsibility, and improve economic conditions in their workplaces and communities.
Learn more about University Learning Outcomes at: http://humboldt.edu/assessment/hsu_learning_outcomes.html
COURSE POLICIES
Active participation is the key to your success in this course. Class meetings will consist of mini-lectures, discussions, small group work, free-writes, media presentations and other activities. Students are expected to arrive on time to class and to not leave early unless prior arrangements have been made with the professor.
Office Hours
I welcome visitors! Come to my office hours whether you have a specific question about the course content, or more general concerns. My office hours are set aside specifically for students. If you cannot make my scheduled office hours, please email me to make an appointment at another time.
Late Work
The deadlines in this course are firm. If work is not turned in on time, you will not receive full credit based on my discretion.
Email
In order to be prepared, it is crucial that you regularly check your HSU email account.
Periodically, I will send out reminders, schedule changes and other important information. I do my best to answer your emails as quickly as possible. That said, it often takes me about 24 hours to answer an email.
Accommodations
Students with Disabilities: This syllabus was designed using recommended practices for creating accessible word documents. If you have suggestions regarding improving the accessibility of this document or other content for this class, please contact me. Persons who wish to request disability-related accommodations should contact the Student
Disability Resource Center in the Learning Commons, Lower Library, 826-4678 (voice) or
826-5392 (TDD). Some accommodations may take up to several weeks to arrange. http://www.humboldt.edu/disability/
Academic Honesty:
Cheating is defined as obtaining or attempting to obtain, or aiding another in obtaining or attempting to obtain credit for work or any improvement in evaluation of performance, by
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any dishonest or deceptive means. Plagiarism is defined as the act of using the ideas or work of another person or persons as if they were one's own, without giving proper credit to the sources. Cheating and Plagiarism are serious offenses for which HSU has strict policies. Please note that using work for this course that you have submitted in another course constitutes a form of academic dishonesty and will result in failure of the course.
Students are responsible for knowing policy regarding academic honesty: http://www.humboldt.edu/studentrights/academic_honesty.php or http://pine.humboldt.edu/registrar/catalog/
Attendance and disruptive behavior:
Students are responsible for knowing policy regarding attendance and disruptive behavior: http://www.humboldt.edu/studentrights/attendance_behavior.php
Add/Drop policy:
Students are responsible for knowing the University policy, procedures, and schedule for dropping or adding classes. http://www.humboldt.edu/~reg/regulations/schedadjust.html
Emergency evacuation:
Please review the evacuation plan for the classroom (posted on the orange signs), and review: http://www.humboldt.edu/emergencymgmtprogram/evacuation_procedures.php for information on campus Emergency Procedures. During an emergency, information can be found campus conditions at: 826-INFO or www.humboldt.edu/emergency
CLASS PREPARATION
In order to be successful on assignments and to effectively utilize course material in your writing and service learning reflections, it will be important to unpack this material with your classmates and the professor. You are expected to come to all class sessions and to be prepared to fully participate. There are some basics to good participation. Bring your assigned texts, whether a copy of an electronic reading or a book to class so that we can refer to them. Complete readings before class and be ready to engage the material. Being prepared also means coming to class sober, turning your cell phone off once you arrive, and remaining awake throughout the duration. You are expected to refrain from behaviors which interfere with the learning of your classmates, such as playing with your smart phone, reading the newspaper, working on an assignment for another class, engaging in side conversations, etc.
CLASSROOM PROCESS AND STRUCTURE
Our classroom will be very dynamic and highly engaged. We will not only talk
about criminology and justice issues, at times we will be practicing and embodying the theory. My lecturing will be minimal and you will be directly involved in defining concepts and applying them in the classroom. You will
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be asked affirm or challenge theoretical constructs from the point of view of your own lived experience. To accomplish we will use multiple classroom learning configurations including: personal reflection, pairs, small groups, learning teams, circle practices and large group strategies. Occasionally you will be taking tests WITH your classmates and you will be asked to reach consensus with others.
ASSIGNMENTS AND POINT VALUES
15% Class Participation
15% Pop Quizzes (5)
25% Midterm Exam
20% Team Presentation
25% Final Exam
CLASS GRADING
A 94-100 B+ 87-89 C+ 77-79 D+ 67-69 F below 60
A- 90-93 B 84-86 C 74-76 D 64-66
B- 80-83 C- 70-73 D- 60-63
COURSE SCHEDULE
Week One: Introductions/Review of Syllabus
January 21: Introductions, Review of Syllabus.
Week Two: Building the Classroom Learning Environment
January 26: Building the Learning Environment: Part 1
January 28: Building the Learning Environment: Part 2
Week Three: The Problem of Crime
February 2: Intro to Criminology and Chapter 1: The Problem of Crime (B & M)
February 4: Chapter 2: The Measurement of Crime (B &M)
Week Four:
February 9: Criminological Theory and Chapter 3: Inventing Criminology (B &M)
February 11: Chapter 4: Social Structure, Anomie and Crime (B &M)
Week Five:
February 16: Chapter 5: Delinquent Subcultures and Labeling (B &M)
February 18: Chapter 6: Social leaning Theory and Social Control Theory (B &M)
Week Six:
February 23: Chapter 7: The Conflict Control Theory (B &M)
February 25: Chapter 8: Feminist and Critical Theories (B &M)
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Week Seven
March 2: Inequities and Crime and Chapter 9: Inequity, Crime and Victimization (B &M)
March 4: Chapter 10: Interpersonal Voice
Week Eight:
March 9: Chapter 11: White Color Crime (B &M)
March 11: Chapter 12: Political Crime/Midterm review
March 16-20: SPRING BREAK
Week Nine:
March 23: Midterm exam
March 25: Chapter 1: Criminal justice and the Community (C & H)
Week Ten:
March 30: Chapter 2: Policing and Community Justice (C & H)
April 1: Chapter 3: The Courts and Community Justice (C & H)
Week Eleven:
April 6: Chapter 4: Corrections and Community Justice (C & H)
April 8: Chapter 5: The Future of Community Justice (C & H)
Week Twelve:
April 13 Restorative Justice: Part 1: Theory (Reading to Be Assigned)
April 15: Restorative Justice: Part 2: Practice (Reading to Be Assigned)
Week Thirteen:
April 20: Team Topic Marketplace/Teams Form
April 22: Team Planning/Coaching
Week Fourteen:
April 27: Team Planning/Coaching
April 29: Team Presentations
Week Fifteen:
May 4: Team Presentations
May 6: Team Presentations/Final Exam Review
Week Sixteen
May 13: Final Exam (10:20am-12:10pm)
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