Central Penn College criminal justice professors offer real-world experience

SUMMERDALE, Pa. - March 11, 2013 - PRLog -- FBI veteran and civil rights expert Jeffrey Goble, and former executive director of the Pennsylvania Ethics Commission and legal counsel John Contino have joined the criminal justice and homeland security management faculty at Central Penn College.

“John is a compendium of ethical information within the legal system and government,” says Sam Morgan, criminal justice and homeland security management program champion. “Jeff brings a focus on surveillance and civil rights rarely seen outside of law school. This brings Central Penn’s programs full circle, where theory meets reality, with a career-oriented focus."

Goble, Contino and Morgan offer students the opportunity to learn from professionals with experience on the federal, state and local levels through Goble’s 25 years with the FBI, Contino’s 28 years in state ethics and government and Morgan’s more than 30 years within the criminal justice field, first as a corrections officer and later as a police officer. Goble started at Central Penn in Nov. 2012 and Contino joined in Jan. 2013.

In addition to new faculty, the criminal justice and homeland security management program curriculums were updated to align with societal changes and to reflect a more hands-on approach. Several new core courses were created or updated, including: Corrections in America, Computer Forensics and Cyber Crime, Victimology, Essential Criminal Justice and Criminology Research Methods, Global Drug Enforcement and Forensic Science.

Upcoming projects for the programs include updates to a staged crime scene area on campus, which also is used by local law enforcement for training. This crime scene is video linked to the criminal justice laboratory, where students can collaborate with crime scene technicians as they approach processing a training crime scene.

“The goal for the programs is to truly develop a collaborative learning environment that produces model law enforcement and homeland security professionals,” explains Morgan. “Just like fingerprints, we leave our ethics and morality wherever we go. The faculty at Central Penn strive to not only provide students with applicable knowledge in their chosen fields, but also to instill in them that a career in criminal justice or homeland security is a calling—a calling that requires professional and compassionate men and women."

Six Central Penn students have been invited to participate in a homeland security conference from March 19-22, being held by the South Central Task Force (SCTF) at Central Penn College in The Conference Center. The students will have the opportunity to join the more than 200 first responders in attendance and learn from sessions in the following tracts: medical, animal rescue, homeland security and law enforcement. The SCTF is an emergency preparedness task force that addresses planning, prevention, response and recovery for events in south central Pa. that exceed local capabilities.

In the past two years, criminal justice (associate degree), criminal justice administration (bachelor’s degree) and homeland security management (bachelor’s degree) graduates have obtained the following types of positions in their chosen fields: 911 dispatcher, behavioral support specialist, caseworker, correctional officer, court clerk, field investigator, fraud analyst, intervention specialist, intelligence analyst, investigation specialist, legal secretary, police officer, private investigator, probation officer, safety and security manager, security officer, security supervisor, transportation security officer, victim advocate, victim witness coordinator and youth care worker.

For information about enrolling in Central Penn College’s criminal justice bachelor’s or associate degree programs or homeland security management bachelor’s degree program, visit www.centralpenn.edu/homeland or call 1-800-759-2727.