By GAMA DROIVILLE
Contributing Writer
Skill, skill, skill: this is what Alfred Chapleau, former prosecutor and current criminal justice professor at The College of Saint Rose, has said about life and education. While skill is needed, it starts off with a good education. It is important to him and he strives to make sure his students leave his classroom and college well prepared. He encourages students to feel comfortable in the classroom and reminds them to not be afraid to share different thoughts or opinions.
Before joining the college, Chapleau was a chief assistant district attorney in Schenectady County for more than 20 years. He left active legal practice and joined the college 10 years ago. He came to the college because it offered a different challenge.
“Professor Chapleau is very dedicated to helping students educationally. He is always available to meet with them,” said Dave Clark, who teaches criminal justice, a friend and colleague of Chapleau. “His experience as a prosecutor has been invaluable to helping students understand why theory and practice are different, and how you try and reconcile those differences with real issues.”
Chapleau was born and raised in New York to parents that expected much from him and his younger sister. He is a first-generation college student who went to Siena College wanting to become a history teacher. After his first year, he switched to be a political science major. His academic advisor at Siena saw potential and encouraged him to look into law – which he did. He graduated and went on to Albany Law School, where he studied criminal law, and graduated in 1978. Here, he has taught introduction to criminal justice, court systems, American jurisprudence, constitutional law and criminal procedure. He also leads the Saint Rose Mock Trial team, which has won numerous awards in competition with students from other top universities. The Mock Trial team is a group of students who are interested in becoming jurists or just want to go into law school because of the advantages it may provide for someone who simply wants to think how lawyers do.
“It provides them with skills concerning oral communication and critical analysis, skills they do not necessarily get in a classroom environment,” said Chapleau. “It gives them an educational experience of what it’s like to be a lawyer in litigation.”
In addition to career skills, Chapleau mentioned some more general life skills that student’s can take from Mock Trial. The team is “a model for students to show them a process that teaches them that you can disagree with someone, you can hold opposite points of view, be in competition and still be friends,” Chapleau said.
Chapleau said he wants to help Saint Rose students prepare for the challenges of being independent, responsible young adults. He sees opportunities for new course offerings. Having courses that can allow students to see the commonality of two areas of study may inform them on the issues that surround certain policies. This would allow the students to become well-rounded. He has proposed adding more courses that can intertwine to help students develop a clearer understanding of issues around certain laws and policies and is disappointed that his proposal has not been accepted.
In addition to being a jurist, Chapleau trains judges all over New York State for the Office of Court Administration Office of Justice Court Support. He loves this job and shares his experiences to these individuals, most of whom are non-lawyers. He approaches the job by asking himself, “How would I feel if someone I knew had to appear before judges and clerks I train? I’d want them to be before a judge and a clerk who was knowledgeable, judicious and fair.”
After training these judges and clerks for many years, he gets to come back to Saint Rose with real world experiences, thus preparing the students for a better future. During his time outside of the classroom and training judges, Chapleau likes to play golf with his friends.