By Carly Walton

I chose the Criminal Justice field because I want to serve and support my community. I also grew up watching cop shows and I have been able to meet homicide detectives who are featured on the reality TV show First 48 out of Tulsa, Oklahoma, among other cities that are shown. I have seen firsthand how individuals in the law enforcement career help people when natural disasters hit.

Criminal justice is one of the larger majors offered here, among a total of 42 majors at Greensboro College. The internship possibilities are endless within law enforcement. I am currently an intern with the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office. The majority of my time there so far has been spent working either in the Guilford County jail in downtown Greensboro or with the sheriff. I have toured and shadowed multiple departments, such as the K-9 unit, bailiff’s office, and other specialized units, and different districts of Guilford County.

One place that I have spent much of my internship is the High Point Reentry program. The Reentry program helps people who are on their way out of jail. The program helps line up jobs and places to stay, along with help obtaining any documents that they may need, like a birth certificate or a Social Security card. One of the main projects that I was able to work on with the reentry program was finding second-chance employers who would hire individuals who had been incarcerated.

I had some of the most hands-on experience when working with the K-9 unit. Learning how the officers train the dogs and how extensive the training is are things that I had never thought about. When training the dogs, one thing done weekly is tracking and finding different controlled substances. Each of the K-9s had a signal they gave to their handlers when the substances were found and would get a reward if they were right. One of the new K-9s to join the unit is Rook. In the photo, he is signaling to his handler by looking at the door with his nose at the seam of the car door.

When looking for the perfect internship, the Career and Personal Development page on the Greensboro College website, run by Caryn Atwater, opened my eyes to how many different things I would be able to do within the criminal justice field. The options that Ms. Atwater provides are outstanding. Being a criminal justice major, you can choose to intern at the Greensboro Police Department or as an intern for the NC State Bureau of Investigation.

Knowing that there are so many different options that are given to students is one of the things that I appreciate about Greensboro College and the faculty that work hard for the students to succeed.