Blogging...my new Facebook

First order of business:

I am loving this blogging business. It's like Facebook, but a bit more low key...so I feel less obnoxious going on and on about things going on in my life.

So, assuming that BPD is my community partner

1.) The relationship between citizens and my community partner is one that exists by virtue of our federal republic. The police department exists for community safety and security. The police department also serves as a link between citizens and the legal system itself.

2.) Citizens and the police department interface in cases of

-Law violation

-Security/follow up

-Arrests

They are the level of government citizens interact with in legal situations.

Police officers are even available to tell you directions. They are in place as liaisons of the law for the people.

3.) Citizen participation through voting may or may not have major impacts on the police department. Perhaps through tax evasion, the police department would suffer from citizen non participation.

So. I've finally gotten in contact with the chief. (His secretary at least)

Who knew city police chiefs are so busy and tricky to reach?!

I have a meeting with him tomorrow to discuss finalizing activities for outreach as we are required to start our positions this week.

Anyway,

My questions are:

1.) What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of the winner-take-all system?

2.)It is self-evident that a republic and bureaucracy go hand in hand...Government and bureaucracy go hand in hand for that matter. What effect would direct democracy have on the culture of bureaucracy and what inconveniences could it cause for state and local institutions?

3.) What effect would direct democracy have on participation?

JH? NIMBY!

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CITIZENS AND YOUR CP?

• The juvenile halls in both Santa Clara and San Mateo counties exist because of the citizenry of their respective counties. In both cases, voters had to approve the funding and construction of the facilities, both of which can be difficult to convince communities to do.
  

ON WHAT LEVEL DO THEY INTERACT?

• The citizens can find themselves interacting with the facilities at their own volition (like what I am doing there, or when they go to visit an inmate) or against their will (as when they become an inmate themselves).

HOW CAN CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AFFECT YOUR CP?

• The title of this post contains two acronyms: JH and NIMBY. JH stands for Juvenile Hall, and NIMBY is a now infamous acronym for "Not In My Backyard". It gained popularity during the prison construction boom of the last 20-25 years, where voters would say that they wanted more prisons build and tougher laws to fill them, only they overwhelmingly didn't want the prisons to be located anywhere near them. This demonstrates perfectly that facilities like the ones I am working in exist solely at the discretion of the communities in which they physically and legally reside.

MY 3 Questions:

1. What are some reasons for low voter turnout?
2. What are the pros and cons of much of California's legislation being driven by ballot propositions?
3. What are the pros and cons of term limits?
   

WEEK4

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CITIZENS AND YOUR CP?

• the relationship is that its a public place and its part of the city. its city and county of San Francisco Rec & Park Department. people can go just to play at the playground or even in the rec center to play basket ball

ON WHAT LEVEL DO THEY INTERACT?

• the citizens and rec and park interact on a level that i feel is appropriate for the programs to run efficiently.

HOW CAN CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AFFECT YOUR CP?

• It basic with out the citizens participation there would be no programs running out of park and rec

Would James Madison have been "tough on crime"?

So I completed my letter to both San Mateo Juvenile Hall and Santa Clara Juvenile Hall regarding my proposed scope of access. Having never written such a thing before it was definitely a learning experience. I figured I would post it below, in case anyone ever has to write something like this in the future (or for their CP), as I would have loved to have some sort of template to work with when drafting this.

====================================================




Scope of Access

Each year thousands of youth are cited for a juvenile offense in San Mateo County and Santa Clara County. After completing anywhere from two to four years of probation, many youth are eager to put their criminal past behind them and look forward to a promising, crime-free future. The stigma attached to being a “juvenile delinquent” makes it difficult for youth to muster enough self-confidence to apply to jobs and college.

As part of our mission, FLY’s law program provides important life skills to help youth realize that decisions they make as kids can follow them for the rest of their lives, but it cannot stop there. In order for these youth to create a positive future for themselves, it is imperative that they are able to sever that which binds them to their past. FLY’s record sealing program removes barriers to their employment and helps youth definitively exit the juvenile justice system.

Once youth are no longer incarcerated, the record sealing program pairs them with attorneys who go over their previous charges, figure out the direction the youth intend to take their lives, and then facilitate the submission of the youth’s record sealing petition to the court. As effective as this program is, being able to access youth prior to their release would allow me, as Record Sealing Coordinator, to have an even greater impact.

I would be going into [SCC/SMC] Juvenile Hall on a bi-monthly basis in order to give a presentation to a group of individuals who are participating in FLY’s legal education class. This presentation would cover both the record sealing program itself, along with the legal and social implications of having a criminal record. I would then request access to [SCC/SMC] Juvenile Hall on an as-needed basis in order to have one-on-one communication with individuals who show a specific interest in having their juvenile record sealed. Through this access I hope to increase the number of youth who are aware that their record can be sealed; strengthen the youths’ connections to FLY as an organization; make the participants aware of the effect their criminal records will have on their lives; start to have youth begin thinking about the steps they’ll need to take in order to have their record sealed prior to their release; and engage these youth at a specific period in their lives when they may be especially prone to engage in real introspection and meaningful thought about their future.

Thank you for your consideration.



Sincerely,





David Gable

=================================

My CP's grew out of the need for juvenile justice facilities int heir respective counties. Especially as the number of incarcerated youth has risen, more and more counties have invested in juvenile facilities of their own. It is affected by both federal funding for juvenile crime prevention programs, and also affected by federal standards for criminal legislation. However, it is primarily accountable to the state of California when it comes to most of the policies that significantly impact it.

My questions regarding this chapter are:

1. How does the constitution distribute power between the national and state governments.

2. What are the the advantages and disadvantages of a federal system?

3. What are the Federalist papers?

still searching for CP project

Hi,
I am still in the process of searching for a CP project with my very limited availability. I have recently tried emailing a police officer in Belmont PD named Robert McGriff and am still waiting for a response. Unfortunately, I work 40 hours a week and go to school full-time, which limits my availability for this CP project greatly. I could pretty much only do something on Sunday. If this doesn't work out, I will try to email another officer and go to Belmont PD on Monday after class to see if there is anything else I might still be able to do through Belmont PD.

-Reina

The search continues...and turns into a panic

In my last post, I shared my thoughts on dance, the CP requirement, and why I would want to make Belmont Parks and recreation my CP.

Since that last blog post, I've spoken once with my CP-to be, (hee hee that rhymes) with no real affirmation on being able to begin a position in February. So, I'm a bit stressed out about this... not because I'm not working with Parks and Rec, but because I lack time.

I absolutely do not have time to go off campus during the week. I could make time...but I'd be skipping class, work, and huge responsibilities and commitments I've made that I really can't break. This leaves time on the weekend. Ok, fine.

I'm just wondering what local state run agency runs on weekends and could use help.

So. Since I've heard back from Parks and Recreation, I've looked into volunteerships with Rape Trauma Services of San Mateo, Belmont Fire Department, and the Belmont Police Department. RTS would be my first choice, but the position requires 70 hours of training which just is not at all feasible. Even if I did go through the training at 6 hours per week, I would not even get the chance to do the actual internship before the semester's end.

So, we have to start our CP positions next week. My question is this: What state run agency in Belmont runs on Saturday mornings..? Or even Sunday mornings if push comes to shove.

Study Questions:

1.) Per last week's Washington Post, people are starting to take heed to the reality of a $14 trillion debt. With a new Congress, and if the debt ceiling is raised, what would the effect on large state economics such as California? We have a large number of immigrants, primary-12 education system, a budget crisis, and a 12.4% unemployment rate.

(To name a few)

Clearly, the outcome can't be good. But what will happen to Mexican-Americans since the DREAM act wasn't passed?

How will this affect the already late budget?

2.) Without questioning the usefulness of the state government to function as a more accessible centralized government, in what ways do state governments impede on the federal government's ability to perform certain functions? How/why/why don't state and local governments affect our political culture? And as vast as the United States is, and as significantly smaller as state governments are, why aren't they a venue for bringing to the forefront ideologies other than American left and right?

3.) I do not this is something I don't understand, but I'd like to talk about economic relations between states and between states and the federal government during the Great Recession.

A bit more than a class requirement...

The community partner requirement strikes in me a certain imperative. It was suggested to me that I teach dance through Belmont Parks and Recreation. (Who I've contacted without response) And I love to dance. I really, really love to dance. I love the difficulty, and I love the feeling I get when I finally master a step or move once considered the "undoable". So, if and when I get a response from Parks and Recreation, I will consider making the department my community partner for the semester.

Then there is always the option of doing a "real" internship. Or having some "real" impact on someone through the requirement.

This may be something that I'm aggrandizing because of some sort of self-consciousness, and I'm not completely sure who I'd WANT to be my community partner.

But

1.) To find an appropriate CP, I am using City of Belmont's department directory to find an agency that fits my interests and experience, and I feel can benefit from what I have to offer and vice versa.

2.) Having some hand in dance through Belmont Parks and Recreation, or through the Belmont school system would most definitely be appropriate personally, but for the requirement as well. I understand the propensity of one person, teacher, or one experience in dance to mold parts of a person into who they will be for the rest of their life. I understand that not every student of dance will experience this, but I would like to see what impact I can have on another.

I have not decided whether or not Belmont Parks and Recreation will be my community partner, but this is a great venue for sharing the oscillation that inherent in decision making...though whatever it is may or may not be a big deal :}

My Community Partner

1. The sources that I'm using to find the appropriate CP are: different agencies in San Francisco that are funded by the city

2. the way that I'm evaluating if I will choose the right agency is if i was looking for the services that they offer would it really help me

And so it begins...

1) For my CP this semester, I plan to go to both Santa Clara Juvenile Hall and San Mateo Juvenile Hall, and speak to youth there about the legal and social implications of having a criminal record along with avenues for having the record sealed and/or reduced.

2) I believe this would be an excellent fit, as I run the criminal record sealing program for Fresh Lifelines for Youth in Milpitas (http://www.flyprogram.org/) and have actually been meaning to do this for some time.

3) In order to gain the necessary access to these facilities, I am drafting a "scope of access request" to be given to FLY's primary contacts at each facility.




Santa Clara County Juvenile Hall: ^






San Mateo County Juvenile Hall: ^

Welcome to State & Local Government, Spring 2011

State & Local Government (3 units)
Patricia Andrews, MA
Study Group class format
http://NDNUSLSpring2011.blogspot.com
Spring 2011 – Mondays & Alternating Wednesdays @ 11:00 am
pandrews@ndnu.edu

Course Summary
This course is an introduction to the structure, functions and inter-relations of state and local governments.

Texts
Bowman & Kearney, State and Local Government: The Essentials
Additional readings as assigned by Community Partner and in class

Learning Outcomes
Students will…
1. Demonstrate knowledge of the running of state, local and regional government units, recognize the influence of global forces, and identify their connections to local developments;
2. Understand how decisions made at these levels shape society and political discourse;
3. Demonstrate knowledge of the recurring issues and systemic problems at the state, local and regional levels;
4. Demonstrate knowledge of the inter-relationships between state, local, regional and federal units of government;
5. Weigh, interpret and evaluate actual state, local and regional governmental units and present a sustained argument supported by evidence;
6. Effectively communicate social scientific knowledge and reasoning orally and in writing; and
7. Use the tools of social science research – statistical and qualitative – in formulating a research topic, collecting and analyzing evidence, and presenting results.

Requirements
Consistent attendance, reading and note-taking are always essential to college success. This is especially true within the Study Group format of this class. Students’ preparedness will be assessed at every class session through quizzes and class participation.
1) Students will produce a minimum of 32 pages of written work. All formal papers must be submitted in MLA format.
2) A class blog/reading and CBL reflection journal will be kept on a weekly basis. All students will contribute to one blog in common.
3) Oral communication opportunities develop confidence and skill in public speaking. Due to the Study Group nature of this class, students will be responsible for specific contributions at every class meting.
4) This class incorporates a Community Based Learning (CBL) component. Participation in field work relating to this component will be required. Students will be responsible for arranging their own volunteer assignments under the guidance of the instructor.

Evaluation
A total of 1000 points is possible, broken down into the categories below. Students are encouraged to keep track of their progress on a regular basis throughout the semester.

Exams 2 @ 50 points = 100 10%
Analysis Papers 2 @ 100 points = 200 20%
Class Blog/Reading Journal 1 @ 200 20%
CBL Assignment 1 @ 140 points = 140 14%
Attendance 15 weeks @ 12 points = 180 18%
Participation 15 weeks @ 12 points = 180 18%