Psychology 1010 students attend field trip to the local Cache County Jail. Jesse Schmid teaches at Ridgeline High School and educates students about mental processes. Students receive college credit and while not required to graduate, is encouraged to better understand how the mind works.

The Psych 1010 course at Ridgeline High School is a “way for students to see firsthand what may be something that others in our community really go through” said Schmid, a teacher and Counselor at Ridgeline. The idea of the trip was sparked by a prior teacher who had begun taking the students, which received surprisingly exceptional feedback. Some students said it was the highlight of the class. The goal is for the students to learn how being incarcerated affects people mentally as well as teaches them their actions have consequences.

The course’s other units discuss drugs and how they affect physical and mental behavior as well as social behaviors. The field trip to the local Cache County Jail  shows students how others experience social and environmental influences and how they affected them. A common misconception about the field trip is the inmates the students interact with have minor offenses. Cache County houses about 50% of the state inmates, which means most have higher convictions than robbery, petty theft, and might even include serious convicted murders. The students who choose to go on the trip can ask the inmates questions. Some ask how jail has affected their psychology, what drives their behaviors, and why some keep returning and reoffending to name a few.

Sarah Klomp, a current senior at Ridgeline, provided some insight about the trip and her experience. She went on the trip because she was interested in how criminals’ minds processed and if they felt remorse for what they had done. “I kind of thought that all of them were going to be remorseful inside for what they had done, but surprisingly, some of them were proud of the work they had done.” said Klomp when asked about what surprised her most.

The trip is still a tradition as of 2023 and there is hope it will continue.