P3
April 2012
In
an era of advanced digital technology,
the students in
Cornel Stemley
’s
physical evidence class could easily complete
their class assignment with a computer.
However, this semester they were required
to check fingerprints manually, scrutinizing
every swirl and ridge of the hand to match a
latent print pulled from a mock crime scene
with those from potential suspects.
It’s the essential forensic standard. And it’s the
same work many will seek after graduation as
national accreditation, plans for cutting-edge
labs in the new College of Arts and Sciences building,
and savvy instructors make GCU a destination for
criminal justice education.
About 175 students are enrolled in forensic science
courses. The first graduate is on track for this fall – the
first of many expected to complete their degrees
at GCU who share a curiosity about how evidence
collection, DNA analysis and forensic biology help re-
create crimes.
“It’s like a puzzle, like a movie that has played that you
have to re-create without having seen it,” said Stemley,
a forensics instructor and former police officer who
worked as a federal narcotics investigator in Nebraska
before joining GCU.
Stemley works full time, teaching five courses and
assisting students in extracurricular criminal justice
events. He has organized class ride-alongs with Arizona
police to expose students to crime-scene management
in the field, including an April ride-along with police
on the Navajo Indian reservation in northern Arizona.
Students this semester were required to participate
in a simulated criminal investigation. They collected
evidence and developed probable cause to make an
arrest. They had to go before a judge (Stemley) to show
cause for a warrant after interviewing witnesses and
suspects (GCU drama students). In other simulations,
classes use blood samples and other biological
evidence collected from students to use as examples.
Simulations stress protecting chain of custody. In
real life, investigators risk delaying adjudication of
dangerous felons or falsely convicting innocent people
if evidence is mishandled – leaving victims’ families
without resolution.
Forensic science jobs in Phoenix pay more on average
than similar lab jobs in other markets such as Houston,
Orlando and Tampa, according to the U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics. The Phoenix Police Department’s
crime lab is only five years old and other city
departments, such as Scottsdale’s, are hiring
to staff new crime labs.
Local government positions start can start at
a $50,000 annual salary while jobs in federal
or private labs earn more, making the field a
popular entry-level job.
“It’s not always about working for city
government,” said
Zach Quarles
, a forensics
student in Stemley’s physical evidence class
who competes in investigation simulations
with GCU’s Lopes Justice Society club.
“There are private labs, forensic accountants, forensic
dentists,” Quarles said. “There are something like 40
different forensic disciplines.”
Melissa Beddow
, assistant professor of forensic
science, helped establish GCU’s program less than one
year ago. Students must complete foundational classes
in biology and chemistry before taking forensic science
courses as soon as the third year.
Beddow added that GCU is seeking accreditation
for the University’s labs by the American Academy of
Forensic Sciences. The new Arts and Sciences building
on the west side of campus will include a DNA analysis
lab and forensic chemistry lab to train future forensic
analysts in the fundamentals.
“I think it’s always going to be growing and there’s going
to be new jobs,” Beddow said. “Once you have a solid
foundation, you can apply it anywhere.”
Forensics instructor Cornel Stemley teaches students how to make
casts of tool imprints, such as the marks left by screwdrivers and
hammers used in crimes.
Forensic science graduates to enter world of career opportunities
