Fingerprints and Blood Spatter: Training the Next Cohort of Investigators
Gwynedd Mercy University's new crime scene house is part of a growing trend in experiential learning, providing students with necessary skills to enter the field.
Located just past the guard gates at Gwynedd Mercy University, about an hour northeast of Philadelphia, the crime scene house is a pale yellow, two-story Colonial that appears ordinary at first glance. However, inside, the house is equipped with a fully stocked kitchen, furnished bedrooms, working bathrooms, and an office, all designed to simulate real-life crime scenarios.
To participate in the training, students must put on protective gear before entering the house, where they are closely monitored by professors through a camera feed in the basement. Their objective is to use clues scattered throughout the house to solve crimes.
The house is far from ordinary for Gwynedd Mercy's criminal justice students.
The university's approach to experiential learning aims to provide students with hands-on experience, preparing them for careers in criminal justice.
Author's summary: Gwynedd Mercy University's crime scene house provides experiential learning for criminal justice students.