At Southwestern Oregon Community College, we believe in the power of second chances and the potential for personal growth and rehabilitation. Recently, questions have been raised about our decision to hire an employee with a prior criminal record. We want to address these concerns directly and transparently.
Our hiring process is thorough and considers a wide range of factors, including the individual’s qualifications, experience, as well as a thorough state and federal background check. In 2010, when hiring this individual in our Adult Learning Skills Program, we carefully reviewed the circumstances of the individual’s past and their efforts towards rehabilitation. In addition, we worked with their probation officer to ensure that employment as an adjunct faculty member in our Adult Learning Skills Program was a positive step for all concerned. Given that the individual was not deemed to be an active safety threat by the State of Oregon criminal justice system once the sentence was complete and did not have restrictions related to teaching in our program at the College, we made the decision to move forward with employment.
This individual thrived in this role and has gone on to hold several positions at our College without issue; including Technical Resource Assistant and Laker Learning Commons Coordinator and becoming the classified union president in 2018, representing the hard-working staff members of SWOCC. In 2021, this employee applied for, interviewed, and was hired as the Director of Adult and Pre-College Education and Tutoring Services. This position provides leadership for Adult & Pre-College Education and tutoring programs on campus. The Director manages the College’s Federal Adult Education and Family Literacy Act Title II grant, while overseeing the tutoring center for our College students. In addition, the Director supports and advocates for the continuing education of students from the Adult Basic Skills (ABS), GED, and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs. The Director supervises full- and part-time staff and faculty, classified staff, and college student workers. The Director does not provide tutoring to students, but does lead the tutor certification course for our peer tutors employed by the College each term. While our GED program does have students from our K-12 partners from time to time, the Director does not provide instruction. All instruction is provided by full time or adjunct faculty members employed by the College.
In this role, the individual has received accolades from state and federal partners for their work with adult students working to receive their GED’s and the break the cycle of generational socioeconomic poverty. This employee has worked hard to overcome their past while contributing meaningfully to our campus community and continued to have background checks and monitoring as required by the State and College. The individual is no longer required to register with the Oregon Parole Board and has been employed since 2010 without issue.
We understand that this employment decision has raised concerns, and we are committed to maintaining an open dialogue with our community. We believe that providing opportunities for those who have demonstrated a commitment to turning their lives around aligns with our mission of fulfilling the educational and cultural needs of our diverse communities by providing equitable access to exceptional teaching and learning in a collaborative, engaging, sustainable environment, which supports innovation, lifelong enrichment, and contribution to global society.
We appreciate your understanding and support as we continue to create a welcoming and supportive environment at Southwestern Oregon Community College. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out at publicinformation@socc.edu.
Sincerely,
President Patty Scott
