Doctoral Dissertation Research: Junior Police Youth, Labeling, and Social Control in School

国家警察基金会提案1702385初级警察青年、标签和学校的社会控制dina Okamoto (PI), Mai Thai （Co-PI）初级警察学院是青年管道项目，旨在使当地执法多样化，并以低收入社区为目标，其基本原则是为年轻人提供结构和职业机会。他们的使命是通过促进学术、领导、纪律和社区服务来培养好公民。本项目将探讨青少年警察项目在学校中的作用，以及它们如何塑造学生在教育机构中与成年人和同龄人相处的经历。虽然许多关于校警合作关系的研究侧重于惩罚和排他性纪律实践，如拘留、停学、开除和逮捕，但初级警察项目是刑事司法和教育机构合作的另一个途径。因此，这项研究的智力价值将扩大对各种形式的警务及其如何影响年轻人经历的认识。就更广泛的影响而言，与学校实践、同伴文化和职业课程相关的研究结果将为改善青年，特别是边缘化社区青年福祉的政策和实践提供信息。为了了解初级警察计划的成员如何影响青少年在学校的经历，本研究将使用定性方法比较城市高中初级警察学生与非成员同龄人的经历。观察将在不同的空间进行，如教室、学校活动和初级警察活动，以检查与教育资源、指导、纪律实践和同伴网络相关的主题。采访对象将涉及机构中不同职位的演员，如教师、行政人员、初级警察学生和其他不在项目中的学生。针对成人的问题将涉及他们在职业角色中的经历、与学生的互动以及对学校活动的看法等主题。学生的问题将涉及他们与当局的互动，他们获得的资源，与同龄人的关系以及未来的愿望等主题。本研究的目标是捕捉学校组织中的社会动态，并了解在经常面临各种形式的刑事司法干预的社区背景下与初级警察有关的话语。因此，这项研究将理论化理解超越现有惩罚性框架的社会控制的新方法。

NSF Proposal 1702385Junior Police Youth, Labeling, and Social Control in SchoolDina Okamoto (PI), Mai Thai (Co-PI)Junior police academies are youth pipeline programs that aim to diversify local law enforcement and target low-income communities under the rationale that they provide structure and career opportunities for youth. Their mission is to produce good citizens by promoting academics, leadership, discipline, and community service. This project will explore the role of junior police programs in schools and how they shape students' experiences with adults and peers within the educational institution. While much of the research on school-police partnerships focuses on punishment and exclusionary discipline practices such as detentions, suspensions, expulsions, and arrests, junior police programs are another avenue through which criminal justice and educational institutions collaborate. Thus, the intellectual merit of this study will expand knowledge on various forms of policing and how it shapes the experiences of young people. In terms of broader impacts, findings related to school practices, peer culture, and vocational programs will inform policies and practices to improve the well-being of youth, particularly those in marginalized communities.To understand how membership in the junior police program shapes youth's experiences in school, this study will use qualitative methods to compare the experiences of junior police students with that of their non-member peers at an urban high school. Observations will be conducted in various spaces such as classrooms, school events, and junior police activities to examine themes related to educational resources, mentoring, disciplinary practices, and peer networks. Interviews will be conducted with actors across various positions in the institutional setting, such as teachers, administrators, junior police students, and other students not in the program. Questions for adults will address topics such as their experiences in their professional role, interactions with students, and perceptions of school activities. Questions for students will address topics such as their interactions with authorities, resources they receive, relationships with peers, and future aspirations. The goal of this research will be to capture the social dynamics in the school organization and to understand the discourses related to the junior police in the context of a community that regularly faces various forms of criminal justice intervention. This research will thus theorize new ways of understanding social control beyond existing punitive frameworks.