What are university rules on admission of felons?


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By Amanda Tonoli

atonoli@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Ma’lik Richmond’s presence on the Youngstown State University football team has raised questions about universities’ policies on admitting students with felony convictions.

Despite extensive media coverage, Richmond is not the only convicted felon on a college campus. Universities across Ohio told The Vindicator they admit students with felony convictions.

When a prospective college student applies, most applications have a box to check if that student has been convicted of a major crime or felony. Checking that box alerts university officials.

What happens next is roughly the same at each university, officials told The Vindicator.

“When a student marks ‘yes’ on either the felony or sex-offender box, they are sent written correspondence via U.S. mail that requires them to authorize YSU to perform a background check [using the YSU Police], and asks that they provide a narrative of their offenses [this is done partially to make certain that they fully disclose any and all crimes, and that their narrative matches the information gathered in the background check],” explained YSU spokesman Ron Cole in an email.

“A committee made up of admissions, conduct, police, athletics, faculty and graduate school representatives review the information, interview the candidate and render a decision on admission,” Cole continued in the email.

Although YSU admits a higher number of students who admit felony convictions compared with some four-year public universities in Ohio – specifically Bowling Green State and Wright State universities – it admits a smaller percent of those applicants than other schools.

In 2016, for example, 92 felons applied to YSU and 73 felons were admitted, or 79 percent.

Overall, those 73 admitted felons made up 0.57 percent of YSU’s 12,756 student enrollment in fall 2016.

BGSU and WSU are comparable universities based on similar enrollments and state-funding formulas.

At BGSU in 2016, six felons applied, one was admitted, or 16.7 percent.

Overall, the one admitted felon made up the smallest percent, 0.006, of the university’s 17,650 student enrollment in fall 2016.

WSU, however, admitted 100 percent of the 23 felons who applied in 2016.

Overall, those 23 admitted felons made up 0.13 percent of the university’s 17,775 student enrollment in fall 2016.

Cole said YSU, WSU and BGSU aren’t comparable in all ways.

“YSU is historically open admissions, urban and mostly a commuter university,” he said. “Wright and BGSU are suburban and mostly residential. The settings, students and missions are different.”

While 2017 statistics were not available from other campuses, YSU said 77 prospective students marked “yes” on the felon box for the current school year and 65 were approved for admission of 11,500 applicants.

Other urban universities, including the University of Cincinnati and the University of Akron, do not keep information regarding felon applicants and admissions making a comparison difficult.

Seth Bauguess, WSU communications director, said it’s not as simple as a head count and comparison of numbers.

“Wright State does ask on its application that prospective students acknowledge felonies, but does not know that all of them volunteer the information,” he said.

Bauguess added that in nearly all the WSU admittance cases, the felonies stem from drug charges from several years prior.

Cole said universities must follow national guidelines by the U.S. Department of Education as far as the application process for students with felony convictions.

He added, however, “There is a national conversation taking place regarding the use of criminal justice information in the admission process, and YSU will continue to review and implement best practices.”

Rontel Batie, a National Employment Law Project federal advocate, explained NELP’s stance supporting the felon box’s removal.

“Removing questions about conviction history from college applications is a simple policy change that eases admission barriers and creates a fair chance for people who have records to reach their true potential,” Batie said. “Inquiries into a candidate’s criminal history should be delayed until after a conditional offer of admission has been made, similar to what we are seeing with ban-the-box policies nationwide.”

It’s more than just the box, however.

Batie said the most effective policies don’t just remove the box, they ensure that conviction information is used fairly.

“Colleges and universities should make individualized assessments, giving each applicant with a flag on their record the necessary attention they deserve to make a fair determination instead of blanket exclusions,” Batie added. “They should also consider the age of the offense, as well as any other mitigating factors. ...These are necessary steps that need to be taken if we are serious about giving people the second chance that they deserve to living productive lives.”

Despite the admission of a felony conviction, Cole said the students aren’t haunted by their pasts academically.

“The student’s background is not evident to most on campus as they are not identified as a felon,” Cole said. “Certainly, those that need to know [police, Student Experience] have knowledge of this individual’s presence on campus, and in fact are involved in the initial decision.”

Wright State’s Bauguess concurred.

“[WSU] will make a judgment call based on the applicant’s case history on whether to admit,” he said. “Often information critical to that judgement call includes how much time has passed since the crime [more than a year is often a threshold] and evidence that the applicant’s personal life has stabilized hopefully with demonstrable corrective actions taken by the applicant.”

Bauguess provided the following example:

“The type A admit scenario is usually something like the following I am told: Applicant is charged with a felony several years ago. Has never been charged since. Has earned a degree from another university and is now seeking admittance to Wright State in pursuit of another degree.”

Richmond, a sophomore defensive end, was convicted of rape by a juvenile court judge in a highly publicized 2012 case. He was brought on to the YSU team in January, but when this was revealed in August, it spawned controversy and a petition to have him removed from the team.

After YSU responded by saying Richmond could remain on the team only as a practice player, he filed a federal lawsuit against the university.

A settlement last week allowed him to compete in games.

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