LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – In 2009, the United States Congress established March as National Criminal Justice Month.
With students aspiring to solve crimes, become an advocate for victims, or teach on these topics, UA Little Rock is elevating its criminal justice department further prepare its students for the real deal.
“We’re very focused on experiential learning so for example we have our 3-course internship program,” School of Criminal Justice Director Tusty ten Bensel said.
Ten Bensel says this course gives students the opportunity to work in the field alongside the FBI, ATF, and other departments.
“It’s not only connecting with the professionals but learning from them on best practices on how to get to a job.” ten Bensel said.
She says UA Little Rock just launched a virtual reality app where students can dissect a crime scene and make their own conclusions.
“We plan on developing more things like that to introduce that virtual reality space into our classrooms because we want to meet the students where they are.” ten Bensel continued.
As a former student, and now the director of the department, ten Bensel says the growth in adapting to the way students learn has taken an astronomical leap.
“I think we have a campus that shows our students that we care about them, we care about their success, and we care about their learning.” ten Bensel stated.
