Summer/Fall 2014 Vol.6, Issue 2
Welcome again to all our new MACJ students and well as our returning MACJ students. I hope you have settled into the quarter nicely. This year promises to be jam packed full of exciting academic opportunities sponsored by the Criminal Justice Department including colloquiums and several student thesis defenses. We hope to see you at these events! Be sure to join the MACJ Facebook page so that you can stay on top of everything going on from events, news, and job information. It is a great way to connect with current MACJ students and alumni. To join, request to be added here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MACJ.SU/
The Criminal Justice Department strongly encourages you to present/attend conferences as part of your education at SU. Attending conferences allows you to stay abreast of the current research and issues in discipline as well as affording you the opportunity to build a strong set of networks. There is a small travel stipend that you can apply for to help you attend. Please contact Devin for an application.
We are excited to announce that our Crime Analysis Certificate Program is now being offered online for Fall 2014. We are accepting applications on a rolling basis anytime for any quarter! If you have any questions about this new and exciting opportunity, please do not hesitate to contact me.
For all the new and continuing MACJ students, as Graduate Director of the MACJ program, I am always available to meet with you if you need advising in the form of course selection or career advice. Please do not hesitate to contact me at any time. All new MACJ students will have a formal one-on-one advising meeting with me in Winter quarter to plan your academic career at SU and post-graduation success.
Have a wonderful Fall quarter!
Elaine Gunnison
Graduate Director
The Criminal Justice Department is launching a fully online Crime Analysis Certificate Program (CACP) beginning Fall 2014: http://www.seattleu.edu/artsci/criminal-graduate/cacp/.
For those of you who are aware of the CACP, this is the same CACP curriculum we have offered in the past in the on-campus format. However, beginning Fall 2014 it will be available fully online. The online CACP is the first fully online program offered at Seattle University and our department is excited to be at the forefront of the larger university endeavor to make designated high demand graduate and certificate programs accessible to a wide range of highly qualified students.
We accept applications on a rolling basis. Apply anytime for any quarter! If you have any questions, feel free to contact Dr. Gunnison, the Graduate Director, at gunnisone@seattleu.edu.
Katelyn Mitchell, has lived in Seattle all of her life, the only exception being a four year stint as an undergraduate at Washington State University. Her father was a Washington State Trooper and Katelyn loved his job just about as much as he did. Having always admired the law, Katelyn knew early in life that she wanted a part in improving our justice system, the ideals in which she believes strongly. She has seen people she loves struggle with addiction and has witnessed those poor choices that landed them in a system from which they could not seem to free themselves. These experiences have led her to ask questions, some of the answers to which she has found during her time in the Masters of Criminal Justice (MACJ) Program at Seattle University.
Since completing the MACJ program, Katelyn has been enjoying some much needed free time. In addition to catching up with friends and family, spending time with her pets, and planning her summer wedding, Katelyn has been refocusing on her work; work which led her to the MACJ program in the first place. Katelyn Mitchell has been employed as a Paralegal Specialist in the Criminal Division for the U.S. Justice Department at the U.S. Attorney's Office since January 2011. She assists all federal agencies in criminal investigations that are linked to the Western District of Washington. While working full time while enrolled in graduate school at Seattle University was a tremendous challenge, Katelyn would do it all again. She feels that she left the MACJ program with a greater understanding as to the impact that every facet of our society has on our Criminal Justice system. Katelyn feels that she is now acutely aware of the social, economic, and political factors that influence what takes place on our streets and in our prisons. It is Katelyn’s hope that this greater understanding and open mindset will continue to help her not only to be a better public servant, but a better citizen as well.
Al O'Brien grew up in Seattle. He enlisted in the Marine Corps right out of high school, and took part in the first two major land battles of the Vietnam War in August and September of 1965. After his discharge from active duty, Al was hired by the Seattle Police Department where he worked for twenty-nine years. During his time with the police department, he earned a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from Seattle University. The Chief of Police took him off the street and placed him in the policy writing unit where Al spent three years writing policy for the department.
Al was elected to the Mountlake Terrace City Council in 1991. Five years later Al O’Brien was elected to the Washington State House of Representatives. The Speaker of the House appointed Al chairman of the House Criminal Justice & Corrections Committee, a position that he held for ten years. He served fourteen years in the legislature, retiring in 2011.
Al began teaching at Seattle University in 2006 with a class entitled “Criminal Justice Legislation & Policy.” The course deals with the ways in which criminal law is written. Al also teaches a freshman Core Curriculum Course entitled Law, Justice, and Society, and two other graduate level classes: Theories and Techniques of Crime Scene Investigations and an MPA class, The Administration of Justice.
Nichole Swalko earned her B.A. in Political Science and minor in German Cultural Studies from the University of Washington in Seattle. She is currently working on her Master’s of Arts in Criminal Justice with a specialization in Criminological Investigation and wishes to fulfill her lifelong passion with a career in the FBI. Her motivation and desire to serve this fine nation stems from her unique upbringing. Raising her as an Army Brat, Nichole’s parents instilled monumental values in her which her entire family continues inspire. Her father serves, with 31 years under his belt, as an Active Duty Army Officer; her mother is a dedicated and loving RN; and her younger sister aspires to a military intelligence path. All of them have shaped and fueled Nichole’s passion for criminal justice. She was recently selected for a highly competitive FBI Honors Internship Program and thoroughly enjoys her exciting new position with the agency.