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36 July/August 2014 BizEd improve their post-prison employ- ment opportunities. They also sat in on classes where offenders can improve their résumés, learn skills, and earn GED credits. Students then visited the female minimum-security side of the prison, where there are no perim- eter walls; the women walk freely throughout the grounds. As if to further emphasize the parallels with a college campus, housing is dormitory style. Many students were shocked when, upon enter- ing the dormitory, they were met by a long row of cages housing playful Labrador puppies, which the women care for and train to become aids for the handicapped. During a recent dormitory visit, many of the inmates were eager to introduce the class to their dogs and talk about their lives. They "could be my friends, sisters, mothers, or aunts," said student Scott Schumaier. Halfway House Insights A few weeks after the prison expe- rience, students visited a halfway house, where they sat in on inter- views with recently released offend- ers. These offenders ran the gamut, from young men with mental ill- nesses to elderly individuals attempt- ing to reintegrate into a whole new world; from sophisticated white- collar offenders to naive men and women who could rightly be catego- rized as victims themselves. One released offender, a former lawyer and community activ- ist, authorized his employees to defraud investors, though the offender did not profit himself. Today, he cares for the children of his extended family, expresses remorse for his actions, and seems beaten by his experiences. The reverse rags-to-riches story led stu- dents to question how far any of us are from making such destructive, life-changing decisions. One prison official admitted that for ex-convicts with families to feed and few opportunities for employ- ment, returning to a life of crime is sometimes unavoidable. After seeing the hard work that many prisoners put in to return to society only to be given no opportunity to succeed, student Jason Pride said that as a future employer he would consider hiring ex-offenders. What We Learned Early on, these students often asked, "Why would any good per- son commit a crime?" After the field visits, students had a better understanding and a bigger dose of empathy. "It is easy to forget that criminals are people who deserve to be treated with dignity regardless of the poor decisions that they have made in the past," said JD/MBA student Morgan Taylor. For students in this blended- experiential MBA class, white-col- lar crime is no longer theoretical. They learn how to reduce viola- tions in their organizations. More important, they better understand why some break the law and how stark the consequences of those actions can be. "When you look at someone as a human, you are more likely to feel an obligation to them and their situation. No longer will I ever write someone off...just because they have been found guilty of a crime," Schumaier said. For our university, that response may be the best part. Nitish Singh, an associate professor in business, created the "Reclaiming the Human Spirit" course and serves as director of program innovations and pro- gram lead for the Cook School's certifi- cate in corporate ethics and compliance management at its Boeing Institute of International Business. Thomas Bussen, a compliance consultant and practicing attorney, directs the course and serves as co-representative for Saint Louis Uni- versity's certificate in ethics and compli- ance management. The authors wish to acknowledge the support of Kenneth Parker, associate professor of theology and director of SLU's Prison Program, which provides educational offerings to the staff and inmates of Missouri cor- rectional institutions. Students in S LU's "Reclaiming the Human Spirit" course on their field trip to the Federal Correctional Institution in Greenville, Illinois.