First Advisor

Karlyn Adams-Wiggins

Term of Graduation

Summer 2025

Date of Publication

9-10-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (M.S.) in Psychology

Department

Psychology

Language

English

Subjects

Carceral system-impacted students, Counterstorytelling, Criminal records, Higher education

DOI

10.15760/etd.4035

Physical Description

1 online resource (v, 96 pages)

Abstract

As educational opportunities, particularly prison education programs, continue to expand for incarcerated individuals, this study, which included two participants, one formerly incarcerated and one who pleaded guilty to avoid incarceration, suggests that those who plead guilty to avoid prison may enter college without the structured reintegration resources available to their incarcerated peers. While substantial research has explored the school-to-prison pipeline phenomenon in K-12 settings, fewer studies have examined its impact on students with criminal records navigating higher education. Grounded in Critical Race Theory (CRT) in education, this study seeks to understand the experiences of carceral system-impacted students of color in college, focusing on their sense of community and how they perceive and make sense of their identity. Data collection involved semi-structured qualitative interviews. I employed counterstorytelling to understand how system-impacted students navigate systemic barriers in their academic journeys. Overall, there were three themes: (1) institutional barriers and exclusion, (2) resilience and resistance to deficit narratives, and (3) the importance of community support and networks. Thus, rather than being defined by their criminal records, these system-impacted students actively reshape their roles in academia by leveraging their lived experiences to challenge institutions and advocate for systemic change. The conclusions drawn from this can inform recommendations for university faculty and policy stakeholders that serve as gatekeepers for students with criminal records.

Rights

© 2025 Anakin Rivera Ramirez

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/44140

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