Beyond The Box Wants To Ban Criminal History Question From GA College Applications

GEORGIA — Imagine putting a troubled past behind you, and taking advantage of a second chance.

But as you fill in the blank lines of the application for a college somewhere in Georgia, all the anticipation and hope is dashed with one question: “Have you ever been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor?”

That’s how Abigail Cook felt when she saw that question as she applied to Georgia State University.

Cook had gotten into trouble and was convicted of a minor crime when she was 17 and spent three months in jail for her offense. Released when she was 19, Cook was excited about moving on with her life and being able to go to college — until she saw that question on the application and felt like she was in trouble all over again. She found she wasn’t alone in her feelings.

“Why are you asking the first offender question?” Cook found herself asking the application. “Why do you have to know my criminal history? I’ve done my time.”

Cook and Patrick Rodriguez are leading a coalition of students, college faculty, policymakers, organizations and formerly incarcerated people under the umbrella of Beyond the Box that is working with state lawmakers to have the question about criminal history removed from Georgia college applications.

The coalition includes the National Alliance on Mental Illness, RestoreHER, the Southern Center for Human Rights, and the Georgia Coalition For Higher Education in Prison, of which Rodriguez — who served five years in Georgia state prisons — is executive director.

“We are in conversation with administrations at different universities so they can start to think about why is it that they are asking this question,” the Kennesaw State University organization communications major told Patch. “And are we really looking to create an equitable world, and are we part of that world as people who have committed crimes in the past?”

Beyond the Box points out that a college education is the best way to a second chance for many first-time offenders. They believe a degree reduces repeat criminal behavior among convicted individuals, saying that the recidivism rate among formerly incarcerated people who graduate from college is just over 5 percent, versus 50 percent among those without four-year degrees.

The group has taken its message to campuses around the state, including Emory University, Savannah State, Brewton-Parker College, and Georgia State University.

And the next steps include getting cooperation from the Georgia State Board of Regents, and from state lawmakers. A meeting earlier this month between members of Beyond the Box and Georgia General Assembly members from both chambers could go a long way toward getting a law in place prohibiting the criminal background question on college applications in the state, Rodriguez said.

“Five states have passed legislation that bans the question about criminal conviction history,” Rodriguez said, identifying California, Louisiana, Maryland, Kentucky, and Oregon. “Georgia could be next.”

Cook was able to get accepted into Georgia State, where she now studies art and film. But she said that not everyone will be so lucky. And some people might not even complete the application because they see that question about their criminal history and feel the same hopelessness she felt.

“We've done our time,” Cook reiterated. “We should be able to have you know access to higher education so that we can meaningfully contribute to society.”