Lrt 1(\f\l ll\oJ Jlls,ttc:e APR_e_ lrul-ZOOz ~et:liOV\ 1 ~ Y '1 UNDERGRADUATE ' 1 CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROGRAM Academic Program Review 2001 Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice School of Criminal Justice ' ; College of Education and Human Services Ferris State University Big Rapids, Michigan 2 Academic Program Review 2001 Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Acknowledgements The below individuals are acknowledged for their assistance in the academic program review of the undergraduate Criminal Justice program. Committee Position Ferris State University Position Eric Lambert Chair Assistant Professor School of Criminal Justice Shannon Barton Committee member Assistant Professor School of Criminal Justice -l Teresa Brown Committee member Secretary School of Criminal Justice CJ Alan Clarke Committee member Assistant Professor School of Criminal Justice Frank Crowe Committee member Director School of Criminal Justice Rhonda Delong Committee member Assistant Professor School of Criminal Justice Nancy Hogan Committee member Associate Professor School of Criminal Justice Michael McMorris Committee member Assistant Professor School of Criminal Justice Jeremy Mishler Committee member Director University Advancement and Marketing Susan Pennock Committee member Secretary School of Criminal Justice David Steeno Committee member Professor 3 School of Criminal Justice Phil Watson Committee member Professor Biology Department The committees for the 1991 and 1996 academic programs of the Criminal Justice undergraduate program are also thanked. Their final reports were used as a guide for the current academic review of the undergraduate Criminal Justice program. J j j 4 Academic Program Review 2001 Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Table of Contents Executive Summary 6 Survey Results 10 l Program Profile 21 Historical Overview of the Program 21 l Purpose of Program 24 Program Compatibility With the Mission -l of Ferris State University 25 Program Integration 27 Resources of Program 29 Enrollment 30 Recommendations 32 5 List of Appendices Appendix A Survey Results of Current Criminal Justice Students' Perceptions of the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program Appendix B Survey Results of Graduates of the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program Appendix C Survey Results of Members of the Criminal Justice Advisory Committee Concerning the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program Appendix D List of Criminal Justice Advisory Committee Members and Their Affiliations Appendix E Survey Results of Employers of Alumni of the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program Appendix F Survey Results of Faculty and Staff of the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program -~ Appendix G Program Requirements of the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program AppendixH The ResumesNitas of Full-Time Criminal Justice Faculty Appendix I Enrollment Trends For the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program 6 Academic Program Review 2001 Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Executive Summary In 1972, the undergraduate program in Criminal Justice was founded. The program has grown extensively during the past twenty-nine years from a starting class of fifty-two students to more than five hundred students today. The enrollment has grown as the quality and breadth of the program has become better known across the Midwest. The growth in the number of students has resulted in an ever increasing and adapting undergraduate Criminal Justice program. The program originally began as a two-year program that accepted students with two years of college credit. The original focus of the program was law enforcement. Today, the program is a four year degree that has three tracks: one that focuses on law enforcement, one that focuses on corrections, and one that focuses on a general overview of the criminal justice system. This rapid growth in enrollment lead to problems in the early to middle 1990s. The undergraduate Criminal Justice program functioned well during the 1980s. By the early 1990s, the enrollment growth had increased to a point that it was straining the resources of the program. Faculty-student ratios were far above manageable levels and were at points twice or three times the recommended levels. Faculty were strained by the demands of advising large number of students and teaching overloads to provide the required courses. In order to deal with expanding enrollments, admission standards were imposed. This resulted in a drop of students enrolled in the program from approximately eight hundred to five hundred and fifty. During this time, the advisory committee also recommended to the administration that more resources, especially in the form of new faculty lines, be provided so as to ensure a quality education for Criminal Justice majors. 7 In 1997, the administration approved the allocation of additional resources to the undergraduate Criminal Justice program. Three additional faculty lines were provided. In addition, a new track that focused on a general overview of the criminal justice program was approved. These additional resources allowed the program to provide quality services and instruction to the undergraduate Criminal Justice students. Since the influx of additional resources, the criminal justice undergraduate program has been expanding in new areas. A criminal justice minor was developed and approved. An inter-departmental forensic science minor was also developed and approved. The forensic science minor is built around biology, chemistry, and criminal justice courses. An effort is underway to develop a forensic science major, which would incorporate biology, chemistry, physics, and criminal justice courses. Furthermore, the criminal justice program has expanded to provide courses in the generalist track at three satellite campuses. Currently, the undergraduate program is offered in Flint, Grand Rapids, and Lansing. These programs at the three satellite campuses are offered in cooperation with the local community colleges. The first two or so years are provided by the local community college and the final two years are provided by Ferris State University. This has been a "win-win" situation for both academic institutions. While these programs offer greater outreach for non-traditional students, they have stretched the resources of the undergraduate program. There is the issue of quality advising and instruction. Therefore, as these off-campus programs grow, there will be the need for additional full-time faculty who will be assigned to teach and advise students at these off-campus sites. This will ensure both the success of these programs as well as maintaining the high level of quality provided to students in the undergraduate Criminal Justice program. 8 In addition to the off-campuses concerns, criminal justice faculty feel that there is a need for current computer resources and training areas. Many of the faculty are using computers that are four or more years old. This has resulted in increased difficulty in integrating more current technology and software in their teaching methods and research. It is realized that the computer problem is an university wide issue. Nevertheless, it must be addressed in the near future. Additionally, more resources are required for the precision driving component of the law enforcement track. Currently, university parking lots are utilized during the summer months to provide training in driving for students in the law enforcement track. More state of the art driving facilities are needed. Finally, a larger student computer center for the College of Education and Human Services is required. The current student computer center has only fourteen terminals. This is not enough terminals for a typical class to utilize. Therefore, faculty are hampered by this lack of available terminals. It should be noted that the College of Education and Human Services has one of the largest student enrollments at the university but has one of the smallest student computer centers. While there are problem areas, overall the undergraduate Criminal Justice program is providing quality education to students and is well regarded in the State of Michigan. The survey results of current students, graduates, advisory committee members, and employers all illustrate the point that the undergraduate program is providing quality education and is well respected. The survey results are presented in the next section. Finally, the program has stabilized with enrollments in the five hundred range. This has allowed the program to expand and to provide multiple areas of education to the students, as illustrated by the three different tracks. Overall, it is the recommendation of the program review committee that the 9 undergraduate program in Criminal Justice be continued. It is also the recommendation of the program committee that the administration at Ferris State University continue to provide resources that will ensure the continued growth of the program. 10 Academic Program Review 2001 Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Survey Results An overview of the survey results are presented for the areas of current undergraduate Criminal Justice students, graduates of the undergraduate Criminal Justice program, advisory committee members, employers of alumni of the program, and full-time Criminal Justice faculty. The full survey results are presented in the appendices. Survev Results rz,f Current Students Perception ofthe Undergraduate Criminal Justice Program {see Appendix A). Currently, there are over five hundred students in the undergraduate Criminal Justice major.