Employment Potential
A graduate of the program will have the potential for employment in the following areas:
Correctional Officer: monitors, supervises, and informally counsels inmates under his/her control; works cooperatively with other correctional staff; maintains order within the facility; enforces rules and regulations; searches inmates for contraband items such as weapons or drugs; transports inmates; mediates disputes between inmates; enforces discipline; and reports verbally and in writing about inmate conduct and the quality and quantity of work done by inmates.
Youth Care Worker: monitors the whereabouts and activities of clients under his/her responsibility, informally counsels, and guides proper personality development of clients.
Secure Detention Worker: oversees and monitors juveniles within a secure detention facility, maintains order within the setting, cooperates with staff and law enforcement personnel, is responsible for oral and written communications with a variety of agencies, and is knowledgeable about federal and state laws concerning juvenile rights.
Students Seeking a Certificate in Community Corrections Can Also: Understand substance abuse.
Compare numerous theories of offender treatment.
Demonstrate methods of computer crime investigation.
Students Seeking a Certificate in Alcohol & Other Drug Abuse Can Also: Identify and explain common purposes of group counseling.
Plan and carry out a purposeful counseling group activity.
Explore the personal and professional characteristics of the counselor.
Students Seeking a Certificate in Jail and Juvenile Detention Can Also: Apply principles of subject control.
Implement fire safety.
With additional education and/or work experience, graduates may find other opportunities for employment.
. Adult or Juvenile Administrator
. Institutional Case Worker or Social Worker
. Division of Community Corrections Agent
. Youth Counselor or Case Aide
. Youth Detention Home Supervisor
Note
. Students should be aware that a previous criminal record will limit their opportunity to gain successful employment.
. Wisconsin Training and Standards requires a completed criminal background check in order to successfully complete certifiability. Based upon results of the criminal background check, a student may be denied certifiability and admission into or completion of the Jail and Juvenile Detention Certifcate.
. Students seeking the certifiable jail officer track must successfully complete 15 credits of specific courses within the program, complete the student folder and background check before being eligible to take the following certification requirement courses in conjunction with the Jail and Juvenile Detention Certificate: PS Job Interview & Resume Writing, 105-04-128; Corrections Internship, 10-504-171; Communication Skills 10-504-931; Emergency Procedures, 10-504-936; and Corrections Summary Assessment 10-504-935
. Due to Department of Justice - Training and Standards Bureau requirements, transfer of credits for core Criminal Justice courses will not be accepted. The exception to this would be if the courses are from another Wisconsin Technical College who is authorized as a certified Department of Justice - Training and Standards training academy.
Curriculum
The Criminal Justice - Corrections Associate Degree is a two-year, four-semester program. Upon graduation, a student will have completed 64 credits.
FIRST SEMESTER
10-504-114 Police-Nutrition/Fitness
1
10-801-136 English Composition 1
3
10-801-196 Oral/Interpersonal Comm
3
10-804-107 College Mathematics
3
10-809-166 Intro to Ethics: Theory & App
3
10-809-197 Contemporary Amer Society
3
SECOND SEMESTER
10-504-123 Correctional Institutions
3
10-504-132 Courts/Jurisdiction
3
10-504-153 Ethics - Criminal Justice
3
10-504-900 Intro to Criminal Justice
3
* 10-504-931 Communication Skills
3
* 10-504-933 Correctional Report Writing
3
THIRD SEMESTER
10-504-155 Community Corrections
3
* 10-504-932 Adult Supervision
3
* 10-504-934 Correctional Law & Code
3
* 10-504-937 Juvenile Supervision
3
FOURTH SEMESTER
* 10-504-930 Security Procedures
3
* 10-504-935 Corrections Summary Assessment
1
10-809-172 Race Ethnic & Diversity
3
10-809-199 Psychology Of Human Relations
3
Curriculum Note
*Students enrolled in either of the Associate Degree Criminal Justice programs planning to become certifiable must complete core criminal justice courses for the program within three years. The clock starts for a college certification track student on the first day the student enters into a core criminal justice course.
Suggested Electives
* PS Job Interviews & Resume Writing, 10-504-128
* Corrections Internship, 10-504-171
* Emergency Procedures, 10-504-936
Investigating High Tech Crime, 10-504-127
Treatment of Criminal Offenders, 10-504-119
Understanding Substance Abuse, 10-550-170
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
These courses provide an opportunity for students to develop the knowledge, skills, and understanding required for employment in this field.
10-504-114 POLICE-NUTRITION/FITNESS ...the course will provide an introduction to nutrition and eating correctly for maximum value. Also, an introduction to fitness for a criminal justice professional.
10-504-123 CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS ...the evolution of punishment, development of prisons, southern penal systems, the "Big House" era, prisoner movement, inmate groups, special offender groups, the female offender, prison programs, prison services.
10-504-132 COURTS/JURISDICTIONS ...development of the American judicial system, the federal and Wisconsin court structure, Wisconsin judicial rules and procedures from complaint to sentencing as they impact police or correctional officers.
10-504-153 ETHICS - CRIMINAL JUSTICE...In-depth study of ethical philosophies and their application to the Law Enforcement Officer’s Code of Ethics and professional performance in the field. Topics include morality, leadership, ethical decision-making, self-actualization, ethics-based performance and the breakdown of ethical conduct.
10-504-155 COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS ...criminal justice system stages, community-based corrections, diversion programs, pre-trial release programs, restitution, community service, temporary release programs, halfway houses, female offenders, drug and alcohol abusing offenders, and juvenile programs.
10-504-172 CRIMINOLOGY ...nature, extent, and distribution of crime in the United States; biological, psychological, and sociological aspects of crime causation; and legal and political implications of crime prevention and control.
10-504-900 INTRO TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE ...criminal justice, crime picture, criminal law, theories of crime, history of policing, police management, legal aspects, courts, corrections, correction facilities.
10-504-930 SECURITY PROCEDURES ...steps involved in receiving and releasing inmates and maintaining security, admission, release and search procedures, use of jail locking and surveillance equipment, inmate health management, and mitigation of hostage type situations.
10-504-931 COMMUNICATION SKILLS ...apply correctional professional skills including mediation, arbitration, and crisis intervention in a correctional setting.
10-504-932 ADULT SUPERVISION ...practice supervision skills including positive behavior control, dispute resolution, and incident debriefing. Explore belief systems, social pressure, moral problems, decision-making and the consequences of decisions.
10-504-933 CORRECTIONAL REPORT WRITING ...learn basic requirements, guidelines and skills for proper and professional documentation of activities and incidents in a correctional setting. (Prerequisite: 10-801-136, English Comp 1 or 10-801-175, English Comp 1)
10-504-934 CORRECTIONAL LAW & CODE ...concepts and principles underlying legal requirements for jail operations and guidelines for protecting the legal rights of inmates, introduction to the role of the jail officer, rules and standards governing correctional operations, structure of the court system, overview of civil liability, and key constitutional rights of inmates.
10-504-935 CORRECTIONS SUMMARY ASSESSMENT ...refine previously learned skills and abilities by applying them to various case studies and simulated situations.
10-504-937 JUVENILE SUPERVISION ...apply theories of adolescent development to develop strategies for effective supervision, protection, and discipline of juveniles.
10-801-136 ENGLISH COMPOSITION 1 ...learners develop knowledge/skills in planning, organizing, writing, editing. Students will also analyze audience/purpose, use elements of research, format documents using standard guidelines, and develop critical reading skills. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer-Sentence Skills =75 AND Accuplacer-Reading =55 OR ACT-English =16 AND ACT Reading =15 OR 77-851-759; BE Communication Prep IIB OR 10-831-103, Intro to College Writing with "C" or better OR equivalent) 3 cr.
10-801-196 ORAL/INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION ...the communication process, perception and self-concept, language, listening, nonverbal communication, interpersonal relationships, communication in groups and public communication; prepare and deliver an oral presentation. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer- Reading =55 OR ACT- Reading =15 OR 77-858-759, BE Reading Prep IIB with "C" or better OR equivalent) 3 cr.
10-804-107 COLLEGE MATHEMATHICS ...an introductory level course designed to review and develop fundamental concepts of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and statistics. Emphasis will be placed on computational skills and applications of rational numbers; problem solving skills with ratios, proportions, and percent; basic principles and application of algebra, geometry, graphing, and statistics; measurement skills in U.S. Customary and Metric Systems; and the use of calculators as a tool. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer-Arithmetic=65 OR ACT-Math=15 OR 10-834-109, PreAlgebra OR 77-854-759, BE Math Prep IIB with "C" or better OR equivalent) 3 cr.
10-809-166 INTRO TO ETHICS: THEORY & APP ...basic understanding of theoretical foundations of ethical thought; analyze/compare relevant issues using diverse ethical perspectives; critically evaluate individual, social/professional standards of behavior--applying a systematic decision-making process. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer-Sentence Skills= 60 AND Accuplacer-Reading =55 OR ACT-English =16 AND ACT Reading =15 OR 77-851-759 BE Communication Prep IIB OR 77-858-759 BE Reading Prep IIB w/ a "C" or better) 3 cr.
10-809-197 CONTEMPORARY AMER SOCIETY...the major social institutions within the American society: government, family, education, religion, and economic system. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer-Sentence Skills= 60 AND Accuplacer-Reading =55 OR ACT-English =16 AND ACT Reading =15 OR 77-851-759 BE Communication Prep IIB OR 77-858-759 BE Reading Prep IIB w/ a "C" or better) 3 cr.
10-801-198 SPEECH ...fundamentals of effective oral presentation to small and large groups: topic selection, audience analysis, methods of organization, research, structuring evidence and support, delivery techniques, and the listening process. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer- Reading =55 OR ACT- Reading =15 OR 77-858-759, BE Reading Prep IIB with "C" or better OR equivalent) 3 cr.
10-809-172 RACE ETHNIC & DIVERSITY ...basic American values of justice and equality by teaching vocabulary, history of immigration/conquest, transcultural communication, legal liability, multicultural majority/minority relations, ageism, sexism, gender, sexual orientation, the disabled/ADA. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer-Sentence Skills= 60 AND Accuplacer-Reading =55 OR ACT-English =16 AND ACT Reading =15 OR 77-851-759 BE Communication Prep IIB OR 77-858-759 BE Reading Prep IIB w/ a "C" or better) 3 cr.
10-809-199 PSYCHOLOGY OF HUMAN RELATIONS ...decision making, motivation, conflict resolution, learning strategies, growth and adjustment, diversity, psychological theories, relationships, psychological disorders, stress, career analysis, social psychology, and lifespan development. (Prerequisite: Accuplacer-Sentence Skills =60 AND Accuplacer-Reading =55 OR ACT-English =16 AND ACT Reading =15 OR 77-851-759 BE Communication Prep IIB OR 77-858-759 BE Reading Prep IIB w/ a "C" or better) 3 cr.