EAST LIVERPOOL – Lynette Rawlings wants to talk with anyone who is even remotely interested in careers in law enforcement, corrections,
litigation or any other area of the legal process. Rawlings is the new academic program director for the justice studies and legal assisting technology majors at the East Liverpool campus.A student can take all the required coursework for a bachelor or associate degree in justice studies in East Liverpool. The same is also true of the 2-year associate degree in the legal assisting field, which teaches about the preparation of court documents and other court processes.
“It’s not just about being a cop on the street,” Rawlings said. Graduates “can work anywhere with this background.” She knows what it takes after spending nearly 25 years serving in various positions with the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
People with a justice studies background can find employment at the federal, state and local levels of government, as well as with private businesses. Parole, probation, and juvenile detention programs are expanding; retail stores and medical facilities are looking for well-balanced security personnel. As terrorism and immigration torment our borders, the Department of Homeland Security will need a skilled team.
With the well-rounded background provided by the degree, a justice studies graduate can eventually progress through management and become anything from chief of police to the head of loss prevention and security for a corporation. Rawlings noted that over $47 billion is lost to employee theft nationwide each year.
“There always will be a criminal element,” said Rawlings. But she added that the kinds of crimes being perpetrated are changing. “This program is going to grow because society is dictating this.” She encourages the justice majors to choose a minor such as computer forensics or accounting that will prepare them for “white-collar” crime detection.
For more information about either of these programs contact Lynette Rawlings in her office on the first floor of the Mary Patterson building, just past the elevator. E-mail her at lrawling@kent.edu.
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Photo by Sable Foster.
