In a BMCC chemistry lab, Mariam Friend pulls on a pair of blue latex gloves and prepares to analyze a sample of her own DNA. “I’m learning a lot,” she says. “Plus it’s great fun.”
Friend is one of 10 students taking part in a summer workshop in forensic science. The workshop was funded by the United States Department of Education’s College Cost Reduction and Access Act Hispanic-Serving Institutions (CCRAA- HSI) Program.
The workshop is an outgrowth of a unique collaboration between BMCC and John Jay College of Criminal Justice that will enable qualified BMCC students to pursue an associate in science degree at BMCC and then continue their studies at John Jay, where they can earn a B.S. degree in forensic science. The program makes its debut this fall.
Prof.Nanette van Loon, the coordinator of this Summer Forensics workshop, developed the syllabus for this program in collaboration with three other faculty; professors Lalitha Jayant, Sarah Salm and Catarina Mata.
An early exposure to the field
By the time they complete the BMCC part of the program, students will have taken courses in the basic sciences, including physics, biology, chemistry and math; forensics doesn’t come till later, after they’ve transferred to John Jay. “That’s what makes the workshop so special,” says BMCC science professor Lalitha Jayant, one of the instructors in the summer program. “It takes students beyond the basics and gives them a close-up look at what forensics is really about—now, while they’re still at BMCC.”
Adds assistant professor Catarina Mata, “the students get to do things here, like DNA and fingerprint analysis, that they wouldn’t otherwise see for years to come. I wish there had been something like this when I was a student.”
The workshop is currently open to both science and forensic science students; beginning next summer, however, only students in the forensic science program will be eligible to participate.
From textbook to real world
DianaThen began her BMCC career as a science major but was drawn to the Forensic Science program because of the hands-on experience it provides. What she likes most about the workshop, she says, “is that it gives us an opportunity to apply what we’ve learned in our textbooks.” While a degree in forensic science will yield invaluable professional dividends in the future, she says, she is already reaping a significant benefit. “I can watch Law and Order: CI and know what they’re talking about.”
For Amaury Collado, the appeal of forensic science lies in the fact that “it marries two of my loves—science and law enforcement.” After separating from the U.S. Marine Corps last year, Amaury Collado enrolled in BMCC as a Liberal Arts major with a view toward pursuing a career in law enforcement. “When I heard about the opportunity to switch to Forensic Science, I jumped on it,” he says.
While the workshop places a heavy emphasis on lab techniques and processes, its purpose, says Jayant, is to help students become scientists, not technicians. “We want them to be able to understand what they’re doing and why—and to troubleshoot problems when they arise.”
