New for this fall: CSI Penn State

Hershey, Pa. -- For more than three decades, Penn State has been involved in helping professional law enforcement officials do their jobs better. Through the University's Justice and Safety Institute, the University provides training and assessment services to federal, state, county and municipal law enforcement agencies. The University is home to one of the world's preeminent forensic entomologists -- Ke Chung Kim, professor of entomology and diplomate with the American Board of Forensic Entomology, who has been called on to analyze crime scenes nationwide for much longer than the TV show "CSI" has been popular. In addition, Randy Hoffman, a veteran of the University Police force, is certified by the International Association for Identification as a crime-scene analyst, and trains other professionals in the use of forensic tools.

Now, Penn State is putting its longstanding expertise and experience in forensics to use in educating undergraduates. On Friday, March 18, the Penn State Board of Trustees learned that the University will have a new major in forensic science in place by this fall. The interdisciplinary program, which because of its strong science content will be housed in the Eberly College of Science, will involve faculty from anthropology, biobehavioral health, entomology, veterinary science, sociology (crime, law and justice) and psychology, as well as most of the basic sciences.

"Forensic science is a highly interdisciplinary field of study, and Penn State currently has the faculty and resources, distributed through numerous academic units, necessary to put together a strong undergraduate forensic science major," said Norman Freed, associate dean in the Eberly College of Science. "We will have a very rich program indeed, because of the wealth of expertise we already have here. We have faculty who are experts in forensic engineering, forensic geology, forensic entomology, forensic anthropology -- some fields you might never associate with forensics -- but they're here, and they're well-respected in their fields."

A primary component of the major will be a forensic science seminar. This seminar is an advanced-level, discussion-oriented course designed to reinforce understanding of the purpose, importance and limitations of scientific methods and techniques commonly used in forensic science; introduce how specific fields such as meteorology, geology, engineering and psychology can contribute to forensic science; more fully appreciate how evidence is introduced and used in criminal trials; and provide an opportunity to improve student skills in oral expression.

"In addition, we're in the process of identifying a location that we can set up as a 'crime scene' for the students to investigate," said Freed. "It will become a living laboratory, where students can learn to recognize, collect and preserve evidence at a crime scene."

Graduates of this new major will be able to pursue employment as scientists in federal, state or private crime laboratories associated with law enforcement or other governmental agencies. Career opportunities also are available in other areas of both private and public sectors as scientists associated with insurance companies, homeland security agencies or the judicial community. Graduates also may pursue graduate studies in a number of fields, including forensics, medicine and law.