POLI 281 - Criminal Justice Policy & Policymaking in Dutchess County

Semester Offered: Spring
0.5 unit(s)

In 2023, Dutchess County voters elected Anthony Parisi for Dutchess County District Attorney. At the time of Parisi’s election, there were very few written and transparent policies for the DA’s office. Parisi is interested in addressing this issue by revising, and in some cases creating, justice-related policies that would guide his office’s work and the work of other legal actors his office interfaces with, such as law enforcement. This is context for the creation of this new course on criminal justice policy and policymaking in Dutchess County. Students learn more about criminal justice policymaking and the importance of community engagement in the process. Students also learn the difference between prevailing paradigms of public policy making and what it looks like in practice. Furthermore, students have an opportunity to better understand the (1) powers of the district attorney, (2) the relationship between policy, praxis, and experiences, (3) the importance of criminal justice policies emerging out of a collaborative and participatory process with community members most impacted (personally and vicariously), and (4) the significance of educational institutions partnering to support local policymaking processes and outcomes. This course facilitates collaboration between Vassar students, community members most impacted by criminal justice policy, criminal justice organizations and advocacy groups (i.e., the Northern Dutchess Branch of the NAACP, Ending the New Jim Crow Action Network [ENJAN] and Poughkeepsie Community Action Collaborative [PCAC]), and the Dutchess County District Attorney/Attorney’s Office. Together, we work to identify and draft criminal justice policies that can be researched, written, vetted, and considered during the six-week course. With better criminal justice policies, there is increased organizational clarity, intentionality, practice/praxis improvements, and accountability, in addition to better outcomes, especially for those most vulnerable and marginalized in society. Taneisha Means.

Second six-week course.

One 2-hour period.

Course Format: CLS