Lish Speaks on Criminal Justice

Jenny McDowell and Jim Coleman were honored with Paul Harris awards at today’s meeting.  This is Jenny’s 4^th PHF and Jim’s 5^th.  Congratulations and thanks to the generosity of these two dedicated Rotarians.

Dr. Paul (“Lish”) Harris, assistant professor in the Criminology Department for more than five years, gave a Rotary classification speech (of sorts) when he shared the interesting history of this “emphasis area” of study on the Dixie State University campus.  Noting, Criminal Justice is now a 4-year bachelors degree program, when it was coming on line “we did our research to avoid a duplication of what is being offered in this field at SUU.”  With a $1 million federal grant, DSU was able to establish the Cyber Crime Institute and is now able to offer a bachelors degree in the unique field of digital forensics which, this relatively new Rotarians states, “fills a nice niche in the state and which invited NO ‘constructive comments’” when it was put before the Board of Regents Review Committee. 

According to Lish, “ours is now the 6^th largest major on campus,” and with the support and expertise of an outstanding adjunct faculty of lawyers and law enforcement professionals, “we are have a growing number of minors in criminology and digital forensics … and our students are finding good placements in law enforcement, forensic psychology, juvenile and adult probation and other criminal justice areas because of the marketable skills our students have developed through their studies.”

Currently, the baccalaurette program has approximately 250 students enrolled with those studying for an associate degree numbering more than 50 students … “and there is a large and growing number of students minoring in criminal justice.”