The White House is asking colleges and universities to rethink how they weigh someone’s criminal history during the application process.
The initiative, dubbed the Fair Chance Education Pledge, seeks to help candidates to higher education institutions who are turned away because of minor offenses, often committed as juveniles.
Twenty-five institutions have signed the Fair Chance Higher Education Pledge so far, including Columbia University, Arizona State University, Rutgers University and the University of California system.
The move is part of the Obama administration’s greater push for a reformed criminal justice system.
According to President Obama, these changes to the school application process will help Americans “who’ve paid their debt to society earn their second chance.”
By going to school, Obama suggests those former criminals can more easily reintegrate into society in a positive way and possibly get a job, for example.
The Obama administration is simply asking the schools to go “Beyond the Box,” or specifically determine whether criminal justice-related questions are “necessary to make an informed admission decision, and if so, whether these questions should be moved to a later part of the application process … or whether the initial review of the application can be conducted without knowledge of the answers to the criminal-justice related questions.”
By agreeing to the pledge, schools also agree to support professors and students who want to teach or who are teaching in correctional facilities, as well as ensure internships and job training are available to anyone with a criminal record.
Leaders from 15 of the pledged schools attended a White House meeting Friday with Domestic Policy Council Director Cecilia Muñoz and Education Secretary John King to launch the initiative.
