Forensic science students receive mentorship, insight from New York State Police Crime Laboratory System

A new partnership between the New York State Police Crime Laboratory System, The College of Saint Rose, and other academic partners is empowering forensic science students to seek out mentors and learn what a career in forensic science could look like for them.

The Forensic Investigative Curriculum Program, also known as FIC School, provides undergraduate students with a unique opportunity to meet and learn directly from forensic professionals. The group will meet three times this fall, exploring a different area of forensic science at each informational session.

The program was spearheaded by Dr. Ray Wickenheiser, director of the NYSP Crime Laboratory System. At the first session of the semester, held in the Thelma P. Lally School of Education at Saint Rose, Wickenheiser walked students from all three participating schools through the basics of what forensic scientists and professionals do at the NYSP Crime Lab.

“People consider this to be a cool occupation…and it is,” he joked during the presentation.

While the first session of FIC School gave students an overview of the NYSP Crime Laboratory System, the second and third sessions will take them deeper into the world of forensic science. In October, students will learn more about the toxicology and seized drugs departments at the NYSP laboratory system, and in November, they’ll get to see the crime lab up close with a tour of the NYSP Forensic Investigation Center in Albany.

“[The program is there to] really help students get a better idea of what a career in forensic science is really like, as opposed to what they see on TV,” says Wickenheiser.

But what makes FIC School unique is the emphasis its leaders are putting on networking and mentorship. Outside of the in-person sessions, students will have the opportunity to meet virtually with mentors working at the NYSP Crime Lab, not only giving them an inside look at the day-to-day work of a forensic professional and academic requirements but providing them with invaluable networking experience.

At the first session in September, students got a taste of what this would look like with a “mentor mixer,” which encouraged them to get to know the forensic professionals from the NYSP participating in the program.

“It’s hard to get classroom experience, so finding out what an actual day in the lab looks like is what I’m looking for,” says Hannah Parsons ’24, a forensic science major at Saint Rose interested in learning more about seized drugs and solving cold cases.

The forensic professionals participating in FIC School are benefiting from the program, too. Dr. Lori Ana Valentin, director of professional development and continuing education at Saint Rose, collaborated with Wickenheiser and the NYSP to provide professional development for the participating forensic scientists. At the end of the semester, each mentor will receive a leadership certificate.

While the general public may think that a career in forensic science only entails sampling DNA or investigating CSI-level cases, forensic scientists need to develop skills in communication and public speaking in order to effectively work with police officers and the public and must learn how to be comfortable testifying in court cases.

“This program applies not only to the mentorship piece with the students but to their professional lives,” says Valentin, who worked at the NYSP Forensic Investigation Center for seven years as a forensic scientist before coming to Saint Rose.

“Speaking to students, handling just about every question that’s out there, it’s really going to help them in their jobs,” says Wickenhesier.

By Sarah Heikkinen