CSI Newark: NJIT Starts Forensic Science Program For HS Students

NEWARK, NJ —The New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) has announced a new program designed to help local high school students improve in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) by introducing them to the field of forensic science. The program will be funded by COVID-19 relief money, the school has announced.

The NJIT Forensic Science Initiative (FSI) will welcome its first high school students in the summer 0f 2022 for a five-week program at NJIT, which will feature lab work, field research, tutoring and college preparation counseling, according to a release.

The education will continue for the high school students that fall, where additional forensic science courses will allow students to work with a professional on a capstone research project and attend a forensic conference. These students also will continue to receive tutoring and counseling through NJIT's TRiO progarm.

Additionally, NJIT will help local high school teachers become certified to teach forensic science at their own schools.

NJIT launched its own bachelors in forensic science in 2018, becoming the first college in New Jersey to offer the program, which prepares students for jobs in like medical examiner, crime scene investigator and crime lab analyst.

Kevin Belfield, dean of NJIT's College of Science and Liberal Arts (CSLA), which will manage the FSI program in partnership with NJIT's Center for Pre-College Programs (CPCP), said the school chose forensic science for its initiative because high school students often find it "more interesting and accessible than biology, chemistry, physics or mathematics."

"Because it incorporates topics from all of these subjects, it can serve as 'stealth' mechanism to help students develop competency and preparation for college-level STEM work," Belfield said. "It also opens pathways in related fields."

Jacqueline Cusack, executive director of the CPCP, said exposing high school students to forensic science creates more options for college and beyond.

"This is a fantastic opportunity to get their interest piqued, to get them informed, to give them more options – that's what you want," Cusack said. "You want students to know more so they can be more informed about their decisions."

The NJIT FSI program is backed by $1.4 million in seed money from the U.S. Department of Education, which the state is distributing in the second round of its Governor's Emergency Education Relief (GEER) fund, the school said. The GEER fund was established under the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020.

The funds for the NJIT program come from $28.5 million in federal money that the N.J. Office of the Secretary of Higher Education is distributing under GEER to more than 30 colleges and universities in the state.

According to NJIT, the FSI program complements the school's other efforts to introduce Newark high school students to college, including its Math Success Initiative and Honors Scholars Program.

The school said it hopes to increase the number of local students who attend NJIT, whether they are pursuing careers in STEM or other fields.

"We feel an obligation to truly prepare students for success, not just review their admission submissions," said Joel S. Bloom, NJIT's president. "Newark Public Schools students will be the ultimate beneficiaries of this initiative by being prepared to enter and succeed at NJIT and go on to careers in the STEM fields of their choosing."