Justice Journal. Why a Degree in Public Administration? Economic Hard Tales with a Positive Outcome

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1 H U D S O N V A L L E Y C O M M U N I T Y C O L L E G E Justice Journal S P E C I A L P O I N T S O F I N T E R E S T : Newsletter for the Criminal Justice, Forensic Science, & Public Administration Department V O L U M E I I I, I S S U E I I M A Y I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E : Faculty Initiatives 2 Walk a Mile 3 Restorative Justice Symposium The Animals Page The NEW Animal Advocacy Certificate Program Walk a Mile in Her Shoes Reference Letters Restorative Justice Symposium Faculty Initiative Animal Advocacy Certificate Reference Letters Fun Fact 6 Economic Hard Tales with a Positive Outcome With the economic state, New York has been faced with an overwhelming amount of cuts to local budgets, including HVCC s. With a cut in the college s budget, departments suffer and feel those losses which trickle down to our students. Because of these cuts, our advisement budget has been reduced by more than half of it s normal amount. This department houses five programs with over 750 students enrolled in those programs. The department only has one full time academic advisor, Mr. Howard Bancroft, to see those students. In addition to those students, he sees new students that have applied to one of those five programs, as well as students with The Public Administration Studies program is designed for students who wish to work toward a degree in public affairs, public policy, or other area within the public sector. This degree has been modified to be incredibly versatile for our students. Because of how this program is designed, students can hold a minor concentration in computer science, interest in the programs that will never even attend HVCC. That s well over 1,000 students per semester, not including seeing Budget cuts have impacted colleges and students. one student more than once in a semester. In the past we have had adjunct faculty help Mr. Bancroft meet the needs of all of the students psychology, animal advocacy, or other area of their choosing while earning their Associates in Applied Science. The degree program can even be tailored to the distance learning student looking to take courses online. All of our public administration courses are available online. This degree can also be earned in we serve, but with cuts to our budget, this is no longer an option. So, is there any good news to the economic hard times the department is facing? Thankfully, yes! The department will see an additional academic advisor with the help of the Perkins Grant. This grant will allow us one extra full time advisor, allowing our department to help the vast amount of students we serve in an even more timely manner than ever before. Hats off to Mr. Bancroft and all the hard work and dedication he has put in to help the students of this department. Why a Degree in Public Administration? conjunction with the certificate program in Animal Advocacy if the student chooses this path. If a student is seeking an associates degree, but is interested in the Animal Advocacy Certificate, they can earn their degree in PADM and receive the Animal Advocacy Certificate upon completion of those credits. So why NOT earn a PADM degree?

2 P A G E 2 Let s Hear it for the Faculty! The department has been fortunate enough to have so many incredible faculty members constantly designing initiatives for the students. Their goals are to make Hudson Valley an experience that will not only help you along your educational path, but to develop your abilities as a member of the community and world around you. In these few pages you can see just how much our faculty has been involved with in creating a stronger community learning environment for the department s students. Serving students in Criminal Investigation, Forensic Science, Criminal Justice, Public Administration, and Animal Advocacy An orientation for new students was held on April 28th this year from 6:00-9:00pm in the BTC meeting rooms. An initiative developed by Dr. Carmine Pesca, the lead law instructor in the department, it provided new students and their families to become acquainted with instructors from the department, receive answers for any questions they On Wednesday, April 13th, the department sponsored a Career Workshop Day which was held in several rooms in the Bulmer Telecommunications Building. This was a very successful department wide initiative and included instructors Shawna Addison, Adrianne Rickson, Casey Ryan, Seth Dupuis, Carla Gundermann, Dr. Paul Rogan, Dr. Peter Gemellaro, and Michael Such. New Student Orientation may have had, meet their academic advisor, as well as other successful students from the department in various programs that we offer. New students and their families were even able to look through textbooks that are used in the courses they will be taking in the future. Career Workshop Day dents achieve success in their career search: Resume Writing and Editing, Job Searching, and Interview Techniques. Sergeant John Ryan from the Troy Police Department discussed interviewing techniques and police Almost all faculty members were present at the orientation, and as many as 50 students and their families enjoyed the event. This was the department s second time hosting such an event. The department focused on three main areas to help stuacademy requirements with students who were interested. The students who participated found these three highlighted areas incredibly useful and plan on implementing what they learned in their future career search. Career Services contributed informational flyers, while instructors prepared handouts of what was discussed in each area. It was an informative and successful day. We hope you enjoyed it. J U S T I C E J O U R N A L

3 V O L U M E I I I, I S S U E I I P A G E 3 Walk a Mile in Her Shoes The 4th annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes was held in Troy on April 29th this year. This was the largest turnout in the event s history with 342 participants raising almost $34,000 for the Sexual Crime Victims Assistance Program for Rensselaer County, located at Samaritan Hospital. Participants put on heels and various other types of shoes and liter- ally walk in them for a mile. Most participants are males, but there are children and women involved as well. From HVCC, instructors Dr. Paul Rogan and his daughter, Adrianne Rickson and her family, and Amanda Peppler. HVCC student participants included Casey Powers, Ian Lloyd, Severin Kameni, Erin O Callaghan, James, Snipe, Jenna Spenard, Stephanie Prastio, among others. This community based program was started in 2001 by Frank Baird and consisted of a small group of men and has become a worldwide sensation to raise awareness and money for local rape crisis centers, domestic violence shelters, and other similar programs involving community outreach, education, and prevention. Restorative Justice Symposium On April 19th, the department hosted the Restorative Justice Symposium which consisted of a keynote speaker followed by light refreshments and a panel of restorative justice advocates. The keynote speaker was Dr. David Karp, a professor of Sociology, as well as the Dean of Student Affairs at Skidmore College. Dr. Karp discussed restorative justice at length during his hour presentation. The panel consisted of the Honorable Thomas Keefe, the Albany City Court Judge, Julia Long, former Policy Analyst for the NYS Senate Crime and Corrections Committee, and Jamel Muhammad, the Project SNUG Supervisor from Trinity Alliance. The panelists opened the floor up to questions from the students and community audience. The event was enjoyable and informative for all who attended. The department would like to thank all the faculty who participated in this event and made things happen.

4 P A G E 4 Congratulations to Jaclene Becker and her 4 year old German Shepherd Jazz-man! They are the winners of the department's first Cutest Pet Contest. The winning duo will be awarded a gift card to spend as they wish at PetSmart. It was a difficult decision amongst the other contestants which included Angelina Brown with her dog Wallace, Rachel Safranec with her dog Ferris, and Cayleigh Guild with her cat Buddha. Cutest Pet Contest Winner The Animals Page The fall 2011 semester will launch the new certificate program in animal advocacy. The program gives focus to a rapidly evolving field of study that is taking the globe by storm. The department and college celebrates as this is not only a huge break for animals, but this is the first program of its kind in the country. The department s conversant Certificate in Animal Advocacy Animal Advocacy Courses Offered this Fall The Animal Advocacy Certificate will kick off its debut in the fall 2011 semester with the following courses being offered: CRJS 131 Forensic Investigation of Animal Cruelty #15691 Tuesday 6-8:50pm This course deals with the issues of animal cruelty, animal fighting, and the veterinarian s role in animal advocacy. Investigation and documentation of non-accidental injuries as well as trace evidence, chain of custody, and evidence collection will be covered. CRJS 137 Animal Advocacy Seminar III #15973 Thursdays 6-8:50pm This seminar-based course explores contemporary issues in the animal advocacy arena. The seminar group of faculty is experienced and passionate about this area of study and looks forward to passing that on to their students. Why choose to study animal advocacy? With increasing knowledge and awareness in this area, the link between animal cruelty and human violence is becoming more will provide an in-depth understanding of a chosen topic. (Fall 2011 Animal Fighting) CRJS 230 Animal Law I #15905 MWF 12-12:50 and #13702 Monday 6-9pm This is an introductory course designed to acquaint students with the fundamental principles of animal law and the criminal justice system. Specific topics include the history of animal law, protection of animals by anti-cruelty laws, animal fighting, the social movement of animals in the legal system, and constitutional issues raised in cases involving animals. CRJS 235 Animal Protection Advocacy-Lobbying and Legislation #15972 Wednesday 6-8:50pm This course is an introduction to the legislative process at the town, county, state, and federal level. The course covers the use of the media and established and actions are being taken to prevent, educate, and seek justice. For more information about the program, please contact the department s academic advisor, Mr. Howard Bancroft, or please find information online at: catalog/programs/las/aac.html various mechanisms for lobbying for animal advocacy. This course requires a basic knowledge of animal advocacy issues. Pre/Co-Req: CRJS 231, Animal Law II CRJS 290 Criminal Justice Practicum # and Online This is an internship program in practical field experience and seminars. Field experience will occur in police, sheriff, probation, correction, parole and other criminal justice agencies at the federal, state, and local levels. Students will become acquainted with the function, structure and staff, and clientele of various criminal justice agencies. Classroom concepts will be integrated with practical work experience and shared through classroom discussions. Students will become familiar with community resources and field problems and how to function in public agencies. J U S T I C E J O U R N A L

5 V O L U M E I I I, I S S U E I I P A G E 5 Bob Barker Fund On March 29th, the college hosted a press release to reveal the department s Animal Advocacy Certificate as well as share that Dr. Valerie Lang, an animal law instructor at the college, was responsible for a $100,000 donation from Bob Barker. The money will go to the Hudson Valley Foundation which in turn will start the Bob Barker Animal Advocacy Fund at the college. Dr. Lang will and has utilized the fund to host the Empire State Animal Protection Forum at Hudson Valley Community College in the fall of 2010 and provide students with an opportunity to attend, send two students and instructors to the HSUS sponsored Animal Care Expo in Orlando Florida, host guest speakers in the courses involved with animal advocacy on campus, supply needy students with scholarships and funds for textbooks for animal advocacy courses, and advertise, promote, and recruit new students for the new Animal Advocacy Certificate Program, as well as pursuing other initiatives with animal advocacy in the community. This is an incredible accomplishment for Dr. Lang and we congratulate and celebrate with her and extend our gratitude to Mr. Bob Barker. Note: The Animal Advocacy Certificate will aide students with career ambitions towards humane law enforcement, animal control, humane education, shelter management, lobbying and policy-making, and many others. $100,000 was donated to start the Bob Barker Animal Advocacy NYS Animal Advocacy Day Fund at the college. NYS Assemblyman Jim Tedisco and Senator Greg Ball are sponsoring NYS Animal Advocacy Day on June 1st of this year in Albany, New York. The event will begin at 9:30am in the Well of the Legislative Office Building (LOB) in Albany. It is open to any and all interested. From 9:30am-12:30pm there will be animal advocacy information and networking throughout, and lobbying will commence at 12:30pm. The department s academic advisor, Mr. Howard Bancroft, and a few of the animal advocacy course instructors will be on hand in the morning hours to spread the word about the new certificate program and hand out information about the program.

6 Hudson Valley Community College Criminal Justice, Forensic Science, & Public Administration Department Bulmer Telecommunications Center (BTC) Room Vandenburgh Avenue Troy, New York (518) % of people in the world are left-handed. We re on the Web hvcc.edu If you Want a Good Reference Letter... Don t wait around! Most instructors, like you, are not on campus or reachable during the summer hours, so if you want a reference letter and need it prior to the start of the fall semester, ask now or discuss it with your instructor before the spring semester comes to a close. Things to remember when asking for a reference letter: The reference letter is meant to highlight your attributes, so make sure you re selecting someone who knows your qualities well to write your letter. This letter needs to make you shine. If you have ambitions and plans for your future, be sure you select a person that is aware of those goals. It is always more polite to ask an instructor in person to write your letter than through , so please remember to extend this courtesy to your letter writer. Check the date that you need the letter by. Make sure that you ask the person writing your letter well in advance of this deadline so they have Extend some common courtesies to your letter writer. time to write it and it has time to get there via mail. Also remember that you should provide your letter writer with a stamped envelope with the address of the place you need it sent to. Your future depends on your hard work, dedication and ambition, but along the path towards your goals, you will meet people that can help you along that path. Be sure to speak up in class, let your instructors know who you are and what you stand for. They ll be sure to write you a reference letter that makes you shine like the star you are! Good luck!