Criminal Justice Internship At The Yale Child Abuse Programs

Florida Legislatures created the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice in 1994 to serve as the state agency responsible for youth involved in the juvenile justice system. Although the state agency is under the authority of the state governor, Secretary Christina Daly, who provides leadership for the organization, each circuit has a leadership team who runs the daily operation of each sub-department. The Department’s headquarter is located in Tallahassee Florida where 3,000 employees are employed statewide. Broward County, the seventeenth circuit employs one hundred and twenty employees in Probation. The Department’s mission is to increase public safety by reducing juvenile delinquency through effective prevention, intervention and treatment services that strengthen families and turn around the lives of troubled youth. The Department’s vision is that the children and families of Florida will live in safe, nurturing communities that provide for their needs, recognize their strengths and support their success. The Department has five guiding principles: Prevention and education are paramount; Strengthen partnerships with judicial, legislative and community stakeholders; Promote public safety through effective intervention; provide a safe and nurturing environment for our children and preserve and restore physical and mental health (http://www.djj.state.fl.us/about-us/mission).

I specifically chose this internship experience because previously, I held internships at Flood Law, a defense law firm, and the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office and I figured this internship is a progression. I was definitely interested in exploring the different areas in law to figure out what it is that I wanted and did not want to do and this internship, by far has helped me do that. This internship experience has shaped my career ambitions, as I will further go into detail during the duration of this paper, by allowing me to be exposed to the different areas of law, which then made me decide on what I found to be interested in and areas I did not so much

Ever since I was little I was extremely observant of the people surrounding me. I would watch and study their behaviors, always trying to figure out their thoughts and emotions. Recently I have realized that I could put my childhood play into a real life paying job, only instead of my peers I would get to study criminals. I don’t know much about Forensic Psychology other than the fact that I must achieve a PsyD, and I would be assigned different cities to live and work in. I want to learn about what is necessary for me to get the job, what the pay is, and what is required of me once I get the position.

The purpose of the proposed study is to explore how interns are influenced by the internship in regards to their career choice. The data will be collected from the three different field sites; Higbee and Associates, Legal Aid Society of Orange County and Public Defenders Office of Santa Ana with assessing total of 50-60 interns who will be participating in these three different field sites. Using the previous studies as a guideline I will use the combination of interviews and questionnaires to assess the attitudes of the interns regarding the before and after the internship. After assessing the interns the proposed study will conduct a follow-up study with the interns after six years to see the impact of the internship on the career

Following my internship, I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and accepted a position with the Department of Child Services (DCS) as a case manager; the same one I had observed in the forensic interview room years ago. Intervening in the lives of families as a DCS case manager is extremely fast-paced, stressful, contentious and heartbreaking. Entering a stranger’s home and making a decision that will impact their lives for years to come forces one

As the internship program and the training intended, I have learned much related to my major, Criminal Justice. This internship helped me to acknowledge that qualified, knowledgeable professionals are needed by our complex society to define, administer, and put our rules and standards into force. Like jobs in any other field, to work in the field of law requires expertise. Trained experts are the most desirable to be hired by organizations, tasked to manage justice, to direct their operations. By writing articles for the legal website, I learned to assess law enforcement situations orderly. I learned to make use of the basic legal and management theories to analyze the situations. I got the opportunity to show my understanding of the key process in the U.S. criminal justice system. I also learned to combine approaches from management, law, and the behavioral science to apply them to the situations I was studying.

I believe that an internship in either Human Services or Health Sciences will be an an exceptional way to see firsthand what I have been reading in textbooks and discussing in class for the last year. I have always had a particular interest in the clinical side of psychology, so given the choice I would like to shadow a practicing professional rather than spend time "behind the scenes" or in a lab, which in turn will give me hands on experience with patients and a better understanding of psychological disorders and issues. Through such interactions I hope to fully display my communication, analytical, and problem solving skills and eventually put them to the test. I hope to gain not just the experience of the work life, but also I want to learn

The overall Criminal Justice program at Trinity University helps students discover their own strengths and abilities, expand one’s critical thinking skills, master the three major components of the Criminal Justice system, learn and analyze current issues affecting the Criminal Justice system, apply theories to real-life situations, emphasize the importance of laws and sanctions for violating those laws, understand the process of rehabilitation and its efforts, and in the end prepare students for a successful career within the Criminal Justice field. The program is built on a strong foundation of social science, are combined courses with sociology and psychology, and theories of the outcomes of crime and criminal behavior. Trinity University

As a child, if you asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up, and I answered a lawyer undoubtingly. Once my parents denied signing any of my financial aid forms for school, all of my optimism for that dream went downhill. One thing that has always been consistent is my love for fighting for what is right for the people. My passion for the law and people aided my decision to join the military. Upon my retirement from the military, I was compelled to enroll in the Criminal Justice program at Saint Leo University. After attending a few courses, I deliberated on becoming a forensic psychologist. I believed that becoming a forensic psychologist would allow me to be involved in legal cases while being the eyes and the ears of the courtroom. As time went on I pondered, if I would be helping people or the court system. Now, my interest in the subfields of psychology lies between forensics and counseling. I am not as knowledgeable in either area, so I plan on taking a course in each class to see what feels right. Being in the military all these years, have made me desire to do what my instincts say I was born to do.

My passion for becoming an Internist began while working as a behavior analyst for the May Institute. Serving adults and children with a broad variety of developmental disorders provided my initial impetus and foundation. Working closely with individuals and groups as a case manager, created the desire to treat these individuals and further improve their lives. This experience motivated me to become a medical assistant, further exposing me to complex cases and clarifying my decision. I completed medical school to become an part of a multidisciplinary team to enhance the lives of people and their families stricken with intricate cases, as this tended to push the boundaries of who I am and what I am capable of more so than any other specialty.

Psychology has always fascinated me, learning about classical conditioning (Ivan Pavlov), personality the id, ego, and superego (Sigmund Freud), were all interesting subjects in my high school introduction to psychology class. This subject was very interesting that it planted a desire that I had never forgotten, the desire of wanting to be a psychologist. The dysfunctional home environment in which I grew up also played a role in my decision. Although, I presently I hold a BA in Information Systems, I decided to return to school for my masters in psychology, since it was my first love. Choosing clinical psychology with a specialization in forensic was an easy decision, I love psychology and learning about the law of our country and the United Kingdom. One of my favorite past times is watching television shows old and new alike, such as Perry Mason, The Good Wife on CBS, Law and Order/Special Victim Unit on NBC, and Damages on Netflix. Television shows in the United States and the United Kingdom are not my only pass time, I love to cook, growing up in a Jamaican household undoubtedly allowed me the ability to learn to cook, some of their main dishes such as ackee and salt/cod fish, escovitch fish, curry chicken and much more. My mother also taught me to cook Italian dishes, and within the last three years I’ve learned to bake challah bread. The field of psychology is important to because I hope to comprehend violence

To complete any of my goals, I first need to gain acceptance into the program. My next goals are to finish the program and be a teacher's aide for at least four semesters. Upon being accepted to the program, Fielding allows students to complete the program in the minimum amount of time of five years. Fielding also allows doctoral students to become teacher’s aids if they meet the requirements and are selected by the approving staff members. Contributing back to the school is important to me because it creates growth. After completing the program, I will have the necessary education needed to complete the Examination for Professional Practice of Psychology (EPP) exam and become licensed as a clinical psychologist, which will allow me to pursue my professional goals of working at the VA Behavioral Health Center in Temple, Texas. Fielding’s program will also allow me to continue conducting research on the neuropsychological effects of cannabis and the effects of childhood exposure to neighborhood violence in Dr. Kristine Jacquin's forensic neuropsychology research lab.

My first initial perspective of the internship at the agency is I would gain valuable skills in the criminal justice system and I would become a more marketable candidate for potential careers. My initial perspective has come true. I have learned an abundance of valuable skills and gained much knowledge about probation and parole, as well as the various resources and other agency working together to promote public safety and successfully integrating the clients back to society. The benefits I have gained are becoming knowledgeable in the general population, gang, mental health, and the sex offender unit.

I wish to pursue a career in Forensic Anthropology with the end goal of helping others. In order to be able to reach this goal I will earn a major in criminology with a minor in spanish as well as in anthropology. Through being intrigued by the television show ‘Bones’, I became interested in this field and began to look further into this career. Afterwards, during the eighth grade, my teacher gave me the opportunity to have a mentor. I, instead of having just one mentor, had the favorable opportunity of being mentored by two students who majored in anthropology from UNM, who at the moment found themselves working on their graduates degree.

It has been a while since I started at the internship and I am really glad I decided to work here. I think the experience in this area is a good preview of my career and future. I am learning some important skills and finding out some things about myself and the tough skin I will need in order to stay in the area of juvenile support.