Presenter

Associate Professor Michele Ruyters (RMIT) - 2023 AAUT Award Winner

Title

Delivering transformative, immersive, and authentic work-integrated learning on-campus: experiences of the Bridge of Hope Innocence Initiative (BOHII) RMIT

Abstract

Established at RMIT University in 2014, the Bridge of Hope Innocence Initiative (BOHII), is a multi-disciplinary campus workplace. Student interns collaborate with academics and industry professionals to investigate wrongful conviction claims and raise awareness about errors in the criminal justice system. BOHII’s workplace design enables students to develop and apply transferable employability skills in real-world contexts.

Since 2014, the Bridge of Hope Innocence Initiative (BOHII) teaching team has spearheaded a transformative and immersive work-integrated learning experience for students. BOHII internship students work collaboratively with academics and industry professionals to investigate wrongful conviction claims and raise public awareness about errors in the criminal justice system. BOHII is the only Australian innocence project to be created as an internship model and provides internship opportunities for RMIT students and cross-institutional students. Annually, up to 45 students undertake 50-day or 20-day internships to research the merits of claims and uncover factual errors that might establish a person’s innocence.

BOHII’s workplace design enables students to develop and practice transferable employability skills in real-world situations, including interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, resilience and self-care, critical thinking, collaborative working, and research. The team’s expertise in law, criminology, psychology, and education support BOHII’s multi-disciplinary focus and emphasis on professional skills, while BOHII’s embedded industry linkages provide cross-sectoral experiences that are generally not available in standard internships. BOHII’s strong industry links through legal entities, experts and alumni continuously expand the network of professionals who support BOHII, while media coverage of BOHII’s investigations have raised the profile of wrongful convictions in Australia and of RMIT graduates.

Bio

Michele Ruyters is the Associate Dean, Criminology and Justice Studies and the founder and director of the Bridge of Hope Innocence Initiative and the Criminal Case Review Project at RMIT University. Michele's practice and research interests are in wrongful convictions and lived experiences of miscarriages of justice.

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