Emily Weinberg

LSA Legal Research & Writing

A. SUMMARY

For my project I will be researching the lack of mental health care in the prison

systems. Today, there are copious quantities of people being arrested that have some sort

of mental health issues, yet they still don’t seem to receive the proper care in jail.This

topic is very close to my heart because I have been diagnosed with depression and am

very passionate about the realm of mental health. The questions that will be driving my

research are as follows:

➢ Why is there so little medical care for those with mental health issues in prison?

➢ What can be done to increase the amount of medical care for those who have been

diagnosed with mental health issues?

➢ How can the amount of mental health patients in jail be decreased?

➢ Are there any laws that protect inmates with mental health issues, and if so, why

aren’t they completely fulfilling their purpose?

My vision for my project is to hold a poetry slam during the second semester at a coffee

shop. The price of admission is to bring a book to donate to the prisons. Many prisoners,

those with and without mental illness, are isolated and need some sort of outlet or

distraction. The goal of the book donation is to give the prisoners a good way to keep

themselves busy and show that there are people that care about them and their well-being.

The consultant that will be guiding me throughout my project will be Mr. Gary Hodges.

B. NEW SKILLS, ENHANCED SKILLS, GROWTH GOALS

New Skills:

➢ Organizing an event
 ➢ Donations to prisons

Enhanced Skills:

➢ Communications

➢ Research

➢ Use of psychology to determine mental illness

➢ Knowledge of prison systems

Growth Goals:

➢ Public speaking

➢ Creative writing

C. MARKETING PLAN/ AUDIENCE

My target audience for this project are criminal justice students, psychology

students, and those who feel they need an outlet if they are struggling with any sort of

mental health issue. This will be a beneficial event for this audience because it will allow

students who are already interested in the subject to learn about a more specific issue

within their broad area of interest, as well as allowing students to speak about their own

mental health struggles in a healthy and creative way. To ensure that I target the

appropriate audience, I will reach out to Criminal Justice and Psychology classes around

the school in addition to using flyers and social media to promote my event.
D. PROJECT STEPS

Preliminary Steps Secure venue, find people

to participate in poetry
slam, make phone calls, 5 Hours
draft and send emails and
text messages, create a
loose outline or itinerary

Midway Steps Practice introduction and

poem reading, confirm 5 Hours
venue, confirm presenters,
continue finalizing
itinerary, create fliers and
advertisements

Later Steps Post advertisements, go to

venue and ensure
everything is set up
accordingly, procure 7 Hours
necessary materials,
practice run through with
all presenters

Follow up Write thank you notes to

venue and presenters, clean 3 Hours
up.

Total 20+ Hours

E. PROJECT DOCUMENTATION

➢ Screenshots of text messages and emails concerning my project

➢ Screenshots of social media posts about my project

➢ Copies of fliers used for advertisement

➢ Log of phone calls made

➢ Photos of event
 ➢ Receipts from any purchases or rentals

➢ Copies of all poems entered in poetry slam

F. PROJECT JUSTIFICATION

This project will be beneficial because it will educate a wide array of people about

the importance of mental health and will provide a creative outlet for those who need it.

The amount of people diagnosed with mental illness increases every day, and it is

necessary for people to be aware of this expanding topic and know how to deal with it. I

have never done any sort of creative writing in the form of poetry or hosted an event, so it

will be a challenge for me to organize a venue, speakers, and materials, as well as

presenting my own creative work to an audience. Additionally, I have not had much

experience writing papers based solely on research; therefore, this paper will allow me to

build upon my research and writing skills, as well as expanding my knowledge on how to

find reputable sources.

G. PROJECT-PAPER CONNECTION

My paper will focus on answering my driving questions. This includes the

reasoning behind the lack of mental health care in prisons, how to increase amounts of

medical care for the mentally ill, how to decrease the numbers of mentally ill inmates,

and if there are any laws protecting the mentally ill in prison. The paper will provide

information about the necessity of creative outlets for inmates, which will help establish a

productive outlet for students who are struggling with their own mental health issues. The

event will consist of students expressing their struggles in the form of poetry and show

that mental health is quite common and not something to be afraid of. The price of
 admission ,being a book, will allow for the donation of these books to a prison for the

inmates to have a creative avenue to distract them from their struggles.

H. ACADEMIC HONESTY

I understand that any academic dishonesty by me on any part of the project/paper will

result in failure of the Senior Project and forfeiture of the Legal Studies Seal on my High

School diploma.