Colleges in Louisiana can no longer ask applicants about their criminal history

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Public colleges and universities can’t ask most applicants about their criminal past under legislation the Louisiana House gave final approval on Tuesday.

Though not part of the governor’s package to overhaul the state’s criminal justice system, House Bill 688 could have a sweeping impact on higher education in Louisiana.

Typically, college applicants are required to check a box indicating if they have a prior conviction. Often that revelation is used to reject the application.

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Syrita Steib-Martin, a lab supervisor at Touro Infirmary in New Orleans, did the research that helped Democratic state Reps. Vincent Pierre, of Lafayette, and Ted James, of Baton Rouge, craft the legislation for Louisiana. She pointed the lawmakers to wording used in similar bills being considered in a half of dozen other states.

Based on her research, if Edwards signs the measure, Louisiana would be the first state to take questions about most crimes off college applications, she told The Advocate.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, last week vetoed similar legislation that, like in Louisiana, received overwhelming support from legislators of both parties in both chambers. “We should not encourage schools to turn a blind eye to a prospective student’s potentially violent criminal background,” Hogan wrote in his veto message.

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The Education Department also referred to a study at the State University of New York that showed two-thirds of individuals with a felony criminal offense record stopped the application after being asked about criminal justice involvement.

Steib-Martin wasn’t among that number. After checking the box on her first application – and being rejected by the University of New Orleans – the next time around, Steib-Martin didn’t check the box and was admitted with a scholarship.

Same academic credentials, same application form, same identification number – the only difference was the she left off the check mark identifying her as a convicted felon, she said.

At the age of 19, Steib-Martin got involved with stealing cars. A dealership in Tyler, Texas caught some of the gang’s images on security cameras, so they tried to burn down the dealership in hopes of destroying the evidence. Steib-Martin was convicted and sentenced to the federal penitentiary.

She got out in 2009 after nine years in prison.

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“Had I not been allowed to get an education, life wouldn’t have become better for me,” Steib-Martin said.

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