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ASU gets $7.5M for forensics
By Ken Roedl
Montgomery Advertiser
MONTGOMERY - Alabama State University is one of two Alabama colleges that could play a leading role in easing a ?tremendous need? in forensic sciences.
ASU and the University of Alabama at Birmingham will be allocated bond money approved by voters in the 1999 general election for the purchasing of laboratories and equipment.
ASU receives $7.5 million of an $18 million allocation, with the remaining $10.5 million going to UAB.
?From our point of view, it?s going to be replacing our entire crime lab in Montgomery,? said Dr. J.C. Upshaw Downs, director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.
The new lab will replace an existing crime lab housed in World War II barracks, providing forensic scientists with more space and better facilities, Downs said.
Joining forces with the two universities provides multiple advantages for both the state and the universities, he said, including recruiting and training students into the forensic science field.
?It allows us to recruit people and they?re ready to go a lot quicker than somebody off the street,? Downs said. ?It?s a tremendous advantage to us to be able to reach out to students, get them interested in forensics, get them well-trained and ready to get a job.?
Joe L. Reed, an Alabama State University trustee and chairman of the board of trustees? fiscal and property affairs committee, said the facility will be constructed on property near the corner of South Union Street and Carter Hill Road.
There is some property that needs to be purchased for placement there, Reed said, but the university already owns a good portion of the site.
?We expect it to be a very nice facility; something that?s needed and something that?s different,? Reed said. ?It is something to show Alabama State University is on the cutting edge of education from all angles.?
There has been some discussion about broadening ASU?s existing criminal justice program with the forensics program that will be on campus, Reed said, but nothing further than discussion is in the works.
Alabama has a tremendous need for forensic scientists, as there is only one for every 100 police officers working criminal cases, Downs said. The national average is 70 officers to each scientist with the ideal staffing level one scientist for every 40 officers, he said.
Perhaps it?s the prospect of molding future staff members that has Downs ready to move forward on project that likely won?t be ready for three years.
?I?m really excited about it,? Downs said. ?We?re able to take a historically underrepresented population nationally and increase that representation nationally (with the program at ASU).
?Hopefully we can increase the visibility of the department and increase the visibility of Alabama State University, and at the same time benefit the students at Alabama State going into forensic sciences.?
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Reference: Montgomery Advertiser
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ASU gets $7.5M for forensics
By Ken Roedl
Montgomery Advertiser
MONTGOMERY - Alabama State University is one of two Alabama colleges that could play a leading role in easing a ?tremendous need? in forensic sciences.
ASU and the University of Alabama at Birmingham will be allocated bond money approved by voters in the 1999 general election for the purchasing of laboratories and equipment.
ASU receives $7.5 million of an $18 million allocation, with the remaining $10.5 million going to UAB.
?From our point of view, it?s going to be replacing our entire crime lab in Montgomery,? said Dr. J.C. Upshaw Downs, director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.
The new lab will replace an existing crime lab housed in World War II barracks, providing forensic scientists with more space and better facilities, Downs said.
Joining forces with the two universities provides multiple advantages for both the state and the universities, he said, including recruiting and training students into the forensic science field.
?It allows us to recruit people and they?re ready to go a lot quicker than somebody off the street,? Downs said. ?It?s a tremendous advantage to us to be able to reach out to students, get them interested in forensics, get them well-trained and ready to get a job.?
Joe L. Reed, an Alabama State University trustee and chairman of the board of trustees? fiscal and property affairs committee, said the facility will be constructed on property near the corner of South Union Street and Carter Hill Road.
There is some property that needs to be purchased for placement there, Reed said, but the university already owns a good portion of the site.
?We expect it to be a very nice facility; something that?s needed and something that?s different,? Reed said. ?It is something to show Alabama State University is on the cutting edge of education from all angles.?
There has been some discussion about broadening ASU?s existing criminal justice program with the forensics program that will be on campus, Reed said, but nothing further than discussion is in the works.
Alabama has a tremendous need for forensic scientists, as there is only one for every 100 police officers working criminal cases, Downs said. The national average is 70 officers to each scientist with the ideal staffing level one scientist for every 40 officers, he said.
Perhaps it?s the prospect of molding future staff members that has Downs ready to move forward on project that likely won?t be ready for three years.
?I?m really excited about it,? Downs said. ?We?re able to take a historically underrepresented population nationally and increase that representation nationally (with the program at ASU).
?Hopefully we can increase the visibility of the department and increase the visibility of Alabama State University, and at the same time benefit the students at Alabama State going into forensic sciences.?
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Reference: Montgomery Advertiser
