In addition, your paper should not read like a marketing or advertising brochure. A critical assessment of your agency will include strengths and weaknesses. Describe how the agency is fulfilling its mission, but also describe areas in which it has room for improvement.
Turn your paper in on Blackboard. Save it as a Microsoft Word file, or as a .pdf. Do not use other formats since Blackboard doesn’t load them correctly and I will not be able to read them. Students with Apple computers will need to use a library or campus computer to upload their paper.
Papers will be graded based on their content and the quality of the writing. Spelling and grammar always count.
The questions you need to ask and answer in your paper will depend on the type of agency you are interning with. What follows is a list of questions for each type of agency or organization. These questions should be seen as “guidance.” You do not need to answer every question to earn a good grade. Even within the same agency, roles will be different and some questions will be more or less relevant. Use your own judgment as to what to include. The guidance I provide here may not include other very relevant issues that relate to your agency that you should include in your paper. Remember, I want to know about your agency and how it functions. These suggestions are an effort to help you focus your paper. You may benefit from reading the questions for agencies other than your own. If your agency is not one of the kinds of agencies that I list, you can either read the other ones, which will give you a good idea of the sort of thing I am looking for, or you can come by my office during office hours to discuss your agency and your paper. I am always happy to meet with you and talk about your internship and how it is going. Don’t hesitate to take advantage of this if you need to speak to me. Meeting is often more effective than email.
If you are interning with a local law enforcement agency, your paper might address some of the following issues:
What is the jurisdiction of the department?
How big is the department?
How big is the jurisdiction?
How does the department deal with neighboring jurisdictions? For example, small communities (or college campuses) within a larger city may have their own police force. What issues does that create and how are they resolved?
What are the different divisions?
Who is the chief of the department?
Describe the chain of command from a front line officer to the chief. Include the names of individuals as appropriate.
How are the shifts organized for divisions that operate on a 24-hour cycle?
What are some of the most common offenses the department deals with? What are the likely ways those cases are resolved?
How are entry level officers recruited and trained?
What are the usual and routine duties of entry level officers (or other employees you interact with on a regular basis)?
On what basis are entry level officers evaluated and promoted?
Are there any special or unique challenges the department faces? How is the department responding to these challenges?
Are there any special projects or initiatives being implemented by the department? What are they and what are their goals?
If you are interning with a secure detention facility such as a jail or a prison, your paper might include some of the following:
What populations does the facility detain?
Is it a federal, state, or local institution?
Do they hold adults or juveniles?
How big is the facility?
What is the jurisdiction? Do they hold inmates from other jurisdictions?
How is the facility constructed? Linear, or pods, or dormitories? Does the facility utilize direct or indirect supervision?
Have the inmates all been convicted of a crime, or are there inmates awaiting trial? Does the facility hold some other population, such as undocumented migrants?
Are there any treatment programs in the facility? Job training? Substance abuse? Mental health services?
How are health care services provided?
How are the other daily needs of the inmates met? Food? Hygiene? Laundry? Religious services?
Are there different wings or sections for different populations? For example, men and women must be housed separately. But what about other groups? Veterans? Gang members? Mentally ill inmates? Other groups?
Is there a structured daily routine? If so, what is it?
How are entry level staff recruited and trained?
On what basis are entry level staff evaluated and/or promoted?
If you are interning with a community corrections program, you could discuss the following:
Is it a federal, state, or local agency? Adult or juvenile?
What is the jurisdiction of the agency?
How are the probationers or parolees assigned to the agency? In other words, when a defendant goes to court for a charge, is tried, convicted, and sentenced to probation, what happens next?
How big is the agency? How many probation or parole officers are there in the office?
How many probationers or parolees does the agency supervise? What is the average caseload for a probation or parole officer?
What are some of the more common charges offenders on supervision are convicted of?
How are cases divided up between the officers? Geographically? By type of offender (drug offender, sex offender, etc)? Evenly, so all officers have the same size caseload?
How often do probation or parole officers make contact with their clients? Are there levels of supervision that require more or fewer contacts?
Is there an intensive supervision program?
What do the probation or parole officers do to supervise their caseload? Home visits? Drug tests? Job counseling? Electronic monitoring? What circumstances justify the use of these interventions?
How are entry level staff members recruited and trained?
On what basis are staff members
