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| OCIEL Team (Left to Right): Doug Dretke, Patricia Macias-Fisher, Dr. Bitna Kim |
The Sam Houston State University College of Criminal Justice (SHSU CJ) announces the launch of the Office of Comparative and International Education and Leadership (OCIEL). Working closely with SHSU’s Global Engagement Center, OCIEL will provide support and resources for international students to ensure they are successful during their time at SHSU. OCIEL will also serve SHSU CJ faculty as a resource in the development and delivery of study abroad programs and increase the number of course options for students.
“Our university global engagement center does tremendous work with our international students,” OCIEL Director Doug Dretke said. “At our college level, we provide additional support and resources to our international students studying criminal justice. We’ll be the first stop for them and answer their questions and try to help them handle challenges they might face.”
Joining Dretke is a team of professionals with extensive experience working in various roles within the SHSU CJ Center, including current OCIEL Project Coordinator, Patricia Fisher.
Serving OCIEL as its faculty director of international initiatives is Bitna Kim. She is following in the footsteps of Jurg Gerber, who served as the director of international initiatives for SHSU CJ.
“This is something Jurg has done all along, but now with this new office we want to translate from the education and research to practice or vice versa,” Kim said. “We will all work together as one unit and I’m really excited about it.”
Kim has extensive experience within the international academic arena and currently serves as president of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. She will collaborate with OCIEL to further enhance SHSU CJ’s global engagement while fostering an environment of global academic excellence.
Working professionals in the criminal justice field will benefit from the OCIEL through professional development programs as requested through international partners by working with SHSU CJ’s academic departments to identify and develop academic certifications, micro-credentials for professional development programs and explore the creation and delivery of online programs abroad.
“Through partnerships with the U.S. State Department, we plan to develop and deliver some of our own programs,” Dretke said. “On the other side, we would serve as a resource to our other institutes (LEMIT, CMIT, IHS) that are considering different levels of international programming. We’re the infrastructure support and a resource to SHSU CJ and its centers.”
OCIEL is also a resource to help coordinate international visits to SHSU CJ as well as a resource for students, faculty and staff traveling internationally attending conferences or pursuing other professional and educational opportunities on behalf of SHSU CJ.
Danielle Boisvert, senior associate dean for SHSU CJ, is excited for what OCIEL can offer students, faculty and working professionals.
"We have a dream team," said Boisvert. "Doug's expertise in international programs through CMIT and Bitna's focus on advancing international efforts on a national level will greatly benefit the College. By partnering with the university's Office for Global Engagement, we are aligning all the pieces to enhance our international footprint. OCIEL will provide exceptional opportunities and resources to CJ students and faculty, which will have a real big impact on the field.”
For more information about the SHSU CJ Office of Comparative and International Education and Leadership, email them at ociel@SHSU.EDU. For more information on the SHSU College of Criminal Justice, visit their website.