CSI: Emporia

2018 Apr 4

The Lyon County Sheriff's Office and Emporia State University have teamed up to provide a unique experience for students in the master of science in forensic science program.

The program at ESU was developed with the input of crime lab directors across the Midwest to ensure it was preparing students for the workforce. High-tech facilities and equipment allow students in the program to gain an education not offered elsewhere.

The program is the only one of its kind in the state of Kansas and is designed as a cohort program to allow students to network within their field. Part of that experience is the opportunity for students to participate in an internship with the Lyon County Sheriff's Office.

Detective Sergeant Jacob Welsh explained how the partnership began.

"Dr. (Melissa) Bailey (professor, director of the program) and I met at a training that we hosted here for crime scene forensics," Welsh said. "She said, 'Oh, by the way, Emporia State has a program for students getting their graduate degree for forensic science and it is the only one in the state of Kansas.'

"We began talking about how we could collaborate more. Dr. Bailey didn't know we had a small crime lab here in the sheriff's department. We didn't know the program at ESU existed. We really wanted to use each other's resources and see how we could further relationships."

Bailey said an agreement between the entities was signed and the collaboration began for the spring semester this year.

"We now have a student crime scene response team that is allowed to go to crime scenes," Bailey said. "We have interns, also. I think the program and this partnership is a huge opportunity for our students to do something real that is of value. A lot of our students interned in crime labs, which is amazing, but this is different. It's been a very beneficial partnership with being able to help the sheriffs and the sheriffs being able to help the students. It's been a great relationship."

Welsh said the agreement has allowed students to be able to go to crime scenes when the acting supervisor on duty at the sheriff's office considers it acceptable.

"This semester, students were able to be on scene of a fatality fire," Welsh said. "That was a very good scene for them to respond to because we had the sheriff's office, the local fire department, the local Fire Marshal's Office and the State Fire Marshal's Office there. Having all the different people there that the students could physically see - everybody working through a scene - was a great experience for them."

Another part of the program allows students the opportunity to go on "ride-alongs" with the officers, which student Alexsus Mers said has been beneficial since she is planning a career in law enforcement.

"The one thing that really stands out in working with the sheriff's department is how great this department really is," Mers said. "They are very good at interacting with the community, completely. They go to kids' birthday parties and are just a great group. I've been on a lot of ride-alongs. I'm from St. Louis and I interned with the St. Louis Police Department last summer. Sheriffs from Lyon County communicate a lot differently than other ride-alongs I've been on. It's been a great experience."

Welsh said Mers, with the knowledge she has acquired through her classes, has helped the department with chemicals and testing procedures.

"As part of her internship, Alexsus went through everything we have here, catalogued it and developed a policy book," Welsh said. "Alexsus has also been able to go through and test some of the chemicals we have. This is something we would trust ESU to do because they are working on their master's degrees. Alexsus has also made some recommendations for products we can get here at the sheriff's office that will be good for us to have to help with our investigations. It's been really good for us to have her here, and she's been a big help."

Mers said the experience she has received has been invaluable.

"Being able to go through everything they have here at the sheriff's department and see how it works, has been great," Mers said. "We have some of it at our lab and some we don't. We get to learn how to use the different products and techniques to see if it actually works the way it's supposed to work. It's been a great experience."

Bailey said students are begging to get into the master's program and have the opportunity to work with Welsh's department.

"I had way more applications when I put out the initial call than we had room for," Bailey said. "I've got a waiting list, so we prioritize those students who are graduating so they can go first. We will rotate them every semester so new people will have the opportunity. I don't see the interest ever dying down anytime soon. I get inquiries from a spectrum of people; some want to be laboratory scientists but some want to do crime scene or go into law enforcement. It's nice to have those options."

Bailey has also organized a Forensic Science Seminar Series for the public, which is currently underway.

"Once a month, the forensic science program brings in outside speakers we think would be of interest to the public," Bailey said. "We're really trying to bridge the university with the town, so I've tried to advertise this series with media outlets to invite the public. A lot of these speakers, because they are actually showing photos from crimes, will not allow video recording or pictures. On April 9, we will have Detective Clint Snyder from the Wichita Police Department with his series, 'Catching BTK.'"

The program will be held at 7 p.m. in Room 72 of the Science Hall at ESU.

Bailey said the master's program and partnerships with the Lyon County Sheriff's Office have been successful thus far.

"We've thought of reaching out to the Emporia Police Department as well for this program," she said. "It's been a busy semester. We are wanting to see how this works before we look at expanding. The students are getting to meet other people who have experience - experience they can't get at the university. There's no professor at ESU, at least not in our program, that has been an officer. I think that's huge in getting to see a different side of it.

"I can tell you about a crime lab, but I can't tell you about being out on the streets or investigating a crime. Students are getting so much more experience this way than we could give them alone. The program has been going directions I never thought it would go. It was total chance meeting Jacob in a class, and now this has happened and it's been a win-win."