New Crime Lab Offers MVCC Criminal Justice Students Immersive, Real World Experience

PALOS HILLS, IL — Students seeking careers in law enforcement will now be able to step into the world of forensic science and crime scene analysis thanks to the launch of a new crime lab available this fall at Moraine Valley Community College.

The crime lab is the companion to a new criminal investigation course, CRJ-203: Forensic Science and CSI, this fall. Both the lab and the course will be available to students during the fall semester, which begins Monday, Aug. 18, and later.

The crime lab, located in Building C on the college’s main campus in Palos Hills, offers a simulated environment in which students can practice crime scene investigation techniques safely.

“It came about based upon what I felt was a shortcoming when it came to teaching investigations,” Dave O’Connor said in a college news release, an assistant professor in Moraine Valley's Criminal Justice Program. “It’s one thing to communicate the idea to a student. It’s another thing for them to be part of it.”

O’Connor explained that many who study crime scene investigation may not otherwise experience a crime scene until they are on the job, and that such investigations are different from what is portrayed on television. The college’s new Crime Lab aims to provide a controlled space where students can practice techniques and experience investigations in a low stakes environment.

The lab resembles a small apartment, complete with a bedroom, living room and office space. Walls enclosing each space are outfitted with two-way glass windows to provide a view of ongoing investigations, and cameras will be installed in each room to record labs for review by instructors and consulting professionals. A central collaboration room provides a space for students to debrief with instructors and a view of each simulation room.

“Each one of those rooms can be set up differently depending upon what our investigative focus is for that particular module,” O’Connor said. “With those three different types of rooms, we should be able to set up different crime scenes relatively quickly. What we don’t want is for students to know exactly what the scene is.”

The lab also may open the door to interdisciplinary learning opportunities for students in public service programs at the college.

“It’s relatively rare that a community college has made this type of undertaking. There are a lot of four-year universities that haven’t gone as far as we have, so it’s an exceptional opportunity for our students,” O’Connor said.

The lab’s completion paved the way for the new CRJ-203 course. The immersive, hands-on course allows students to step inside the world of forensic science and crime scene analysis where they will explore investigation techniques; fingerprint, footprint and impression analysis; DNA and bloodstain evidence collection; crime scene photography and documentation; and how to write professional reports and testify in court. Students are required to take the prerequisite course, CRJ-202, prior to enrolling in CRJ-203.

Registration for the fall semester is ongoing. Apply or register at morainevalley.edu/register.