Enlisted Criminal Justice Graduate Sets Sights on Prison Reform

Victoria Ho (MET’21), one of 2021’s proud BU MET graduates and now a recipient of the Master of Science in Criminal Justice, works to make change in the world. Her master’s studies have come alongside a Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) education.

Ho has been serving in the Army since 2013, and began her studies at MET after being encouraged by a fellow officer to take advantage of the veterans’ benefits available to active-duty US military personnel at BU. Now, Ho has been inspired by BU MET’s Prison Education Program to use her education to reform the corrections system.

“BU was one of the first universities to offer some form of education to the incarcerated population,” Ho told BU Today. “That was one of the things that drew me to it in the first place. I’m passionate about corrections—yes, someone committed a crime. The question is, how can we help them better themselves during their incarceration so they can integrate back into civilian life?”

A first-generation Vietnamese American, Ho’s desire to make improvements in our shared society is a deeply personal one.

“My parents came here with nothing, and they worked really, really hard to make a better life for their family—like many people in this country,” she says. “My JROTC officers were always reminding us, ‘Don’t forget where you came from.’ I serve because I wanted to give back to not only my parents, but to my community, and most of all, to my country.”