Associate of Arts (Prison Education Program)
This program offers credit-earning courses to currently incarcerated people and Department of Corrections employees at the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Missouri, culminating in an Associate of Arts degree from Saint Louis University.
Curriculum Overview
Two cohorts of 20 students each take courses that operate on a nine-week term and convene once per week for four hours at a time. Students take a total of five classes per year. To complete the total 61 credits required for the degree, each cohort remains in the program for approximately four years.
All coursework in the degree program comes from the SLU core curriculum and the College of Arts and Sciences. It also aligns with Missouri's Core 42, which transfers to public institutions throughout the state.
Careers
An Associate of Arts degree prepares students for a wide range of employment possibilities and for further study.
- Graduates will be able to use research to sustain an argument and conduct analysis through an academic essay.
- Graduates will be able to apply logical and analytical problem-solving through effective methods of inquiry.
- Graduates will be able to utilize intentional reflection.
- Graduates will be able to apply theories and/or practices of social justice and civic engagement in the Ignatius spirit.
Prison education students must complete a minimum total of 61 credits for the Associate of Arts.
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
Oral and Written Communication | ||
ENGL 1500 | The Process of Composition | 3 |
ENGL 1900 | Advanced Strategies of Rhetoric and Research | 3 |
CMM 1200 | Public Speaking | 3 |
Humanities | ||
AS 1930 | Special Topics 1 | 3 |
Select one ENGL 2000 level course, such as: | 3 | |
Faith, Doubt and Literature | ||
Nature, Ecology & Literature | ||
Technology, Media & Literature | ||
Select one ENGL 3000 level course, such as: | 3 | |
Creative Writing: Poetry | ||
Creative Writing: Fiction | ||
American Literatures after 1865 | ||
Introduction to Shakespeare | ||
PHIL 1050 | Introduction to Philosophy: Self and Reality | 3 |
PHIL 2050 | Ethics | 3 |
THEO 1000 | Theological Foundations | 3 |
Select one THEO 2000 level course, such as: | 3 | |
Introduction to the Old Testament | ||
Introduction to the New Testament | ||
History of Christianity: The First 2000 Years | ||
Christian Ethics | ||
Religions of the World | ||
Select one course from Visual and Performing Arts, such as: | 3 | |
Approaching the Arts | ||
Drawing I | ||
Approaching the Arts: Music | ||
Music Fundamentals | ||
Approaching the Arts: Theatre | ||
Introduction to Theatre | ||
Intro to the Arts | ||
The Arts and Social Change | ||
Sciences | ||
BIOL 1010 | Essentials of Biology | 3 |
Select one additional course from the Natural Sciences, such as: | 3 | |
Understanding the Weather | ||
Introduction to Environmental Science | ||
Physics and the World Around Us | ||
Mathematics | ||
MATH 1200 | College Algebra | 3 |
Social Sciences | ||
HIST 1110 | Origins of the Modern World to 1500 | 3 |
HIST 1120 | Origins of the Modern World (1500 to Present) | 3 |
POLS 1000 | Introduction to Politics | 3 |
or POLS 1100 | Introduction to American Government | |
Select two additional courses from the following: | 6 | |
Human Communication and Culture | ||
Intergroup Dialogue | ||
Principles of Economics | ||
General Psychology | ||
Introduction to Sociology | ||
Electives | ||
Choose one elective from the following (no single course can count for two requirements in this curriculum): | 3 | |
Intro to American Culture: Movements, Myths, and Methods | ||
American Places | ||
Human Communication and Culture | ||
Intergroup Dialogue | ||
Message Design | ||
Media and Society | ||
Creative Writing: Poetry | ||
Creative Writing: Fiction | ||
American Literatures after 1865 | ||
Introduction to Shakespeare | ||
Philosophy of the Human Person | ||
Medical Ethics | ||
General Psychology | ||
Introduction to Sociology | ||
Introduction to the Old Testament | ||
Introduction to the New Testament | ||
History of Christianity: The First 2000 Years | ||
Christian Ethics | ||
Religions of the World | ||
Seeking God: A History | ||
Capstone | ||
AS 4960 | Capstone | 1 |
Total Credits | 61 |
- 1
This change anticipates the Ignite Seminar in the new University Core.
Transfer Credit Policy
- Only college-level transfer courses with a grade of “C” or above will be considered for acceptance and application toward a Saint Louis University degree.
- The cumulative GPA for transfer courses is calculated on all grades from course work of all accredited colleges attended.
- In the case of repeated transfer courses, grades will be calculated according to the policy of the institution from which the two courses were taken.
- Only transfer credits from regionally accredited institutions will be considered for transfer to Saint Louis University.
- The maximum number of transferable hours is 15 credits or 25% of the curriculum.
- Developmental, secretarial and highly technical courses of an applied nature may not transfer.
- All potential transfer courses will be reviewed by the Saint Louis University registrar, an academic advisor and/or the academic director and director of the prison program.
Academic Progress Policy and Academic Probation
- A.A. progression requirements are based on academic performance during each individual term in the A.A. program.
- Any student with a term GPA falling below 2.00 will be placed on academic probation for two to three terms. The term GPA in the following term must be above the 2.00 criterion or the student will be discontinued from the program.
- The Academic Program Director for the A.A. program will notify the student within 14 business days of the posting of the final grades, for the term, regarding his or her placement on probation or discontinuation from the A.A. program. Students may be placed on academic probation no more than twice during the program of study. Students who fall into the academic probation range a third time will be dismissed from the program.
- It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the GPA requirements and as such, know that s/he can be placed on probation or be discontinued from the program based on the GPA requirement. The Academic Program Director is available for consultation and assistance in all progression issues.
- Please note that all A.A. courses are sequential and therefore every A.A. course must be passed with a “D” or better to progress into the next term. In unusual circumstances, a student who fails to meet the minimum requirements may be permitted to continue with the permission of the academic program director and by completing an “academic plan for continued enrollment.”
- Students may only ask for two leaves of absence during their undergraduate program.