The sociology department is taking learning from personal experience to a new level by conducting next semester’s SO 346 Criminal Justice class in a correctional facility with both Baker students and inmates.

“I got the idea after I attended a conference,” Assistant Professor of Sociology Jacob Bucher said. “A group from Philadelphia talked about a program they had where they took students and they had classes in a prison along with the inmates.”

Bucher said the class will be offered next semester and consist of 15 Baker students and 15 inmates from the Topeka Correctional Facility. The class will be held from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday nights in Topeka.

In order to take the class, both students and inmates must be selected through an application and interviewing process.

“This is a great opportunity you cannot find in any normal classroom,” junior Marcia Hillman said. “With this class we can gain an actual grasp of reality by going somewhere and having the chance to interact with the inside students.”

Besides taking learning outside the classroom, the class will not follow the normal lecture and note-taking format.

“I will not be an instructor in the normal sense, but more of a facilitator to help guide discussion,” Bucher said. “The class will sit in a circle, and we will talk about criminal justice issues, have readings, projects and exchange ideas.”

One of the goals of the class is to help students gain knowledge outside what is read in a textbook and heard in a lecture. Bucher said it will allow Baker students to grow through participation, evaluate thoughts and feelings they may have about what it is like living in a prison while also allowing them to seek the truth about any preconceived notions.

“I think it will be good to allow students the opportunity to have a firsthand look from the inside looking out,” freshman Rex Prior said. “This can help students prepare for the future by having the personal experience rather than just what they can read in class.”