State Fair interns see plans in action

Posted on August 6, 2018 by Leslie Wells

More than 900,000 people are expected to visit the Indiana State Fair during the next two weeks, with many lining up to watch this year’s center stage spectacle: the Big Top Circus.

Much like what happens under that big top, most visitors will only see the magic of the fair and not the hard work behind the scenes. For the Indiana State Fairground & Event Center’s safety and security manager, Jennifer Esterline, that’s exactly how it should be. And she has more than a dozen interns—many from O’Neill Indianapolis—to help make that happen.

“We hire 17–18 interns—including freshmen and sophomores—to fill positions in hazard assessment, traffic, incident report writing, security operations, and the emergency operations center,” Esterline says.

The variety of options allow students, like O’Neill public safety management major Logan Kinnett, to explore the field before narrowing down a career path.

“I knew I wanted to work in law enforcement, but I wasn’t sure which area,” he says. “This is a good opportunity to see how federal, state, and local agencies work together while networking with professionals in multiple fields.”

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Bridging the Gaps

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Leslie Wells

Deirdre Kelley standing outside — Deirdre Kelley

The campus of IUPUI may only be 20 miles from the Zionsville farm where Deirdre Kelley grew up, but it’s a world away from what she knew.

Kelley lived out her childhood on a property with goats and chickens, homeschooled by her mother until textbooks became her teachers.

“I thought it’d be really hard to come to college,” she admits. “However, the self-sufficiency I learned throughout my homeschool education set me up to succeed.”

That experience helped her bridge the gap from homeschool to higher education.

“You think of professors and classes as an opportunity to make learning easier,” she says. “You know you could learn from the textbook alone, but it’s much easier to have a person there to help you explore the concepts.”

For Kelley, one of the people who has helped her explore the world of public affairs is SPEA assistant professor Cullen Merritt. Kelley, a civic leadership major, took her first public affairs class with Merritt before she was even in college.

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Pipeline into Policing

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Leslie Wells

(L-R) Jen Popiela, Dominique Bohannon, and Michael Graban — (L-R) SPEA alumni Jen Popiela, Dominique Bohannon, and SPEA student Michael Graban serve as IMPD Cadets.

“I’ve wanted to work for IMPD my entire life,” Michael Graban says with a smile. “I’ve always felt the need to help the public. That’s just who I am and how I was raised.”

The SPEA criminal justice major was indeed raised on the force. Graban’s father and step-father currently serve on the department. His mother is retired IMPD.

Now, he’s in line to carry on that family tradition through the IMPD Cadet program.

After a nearly decade-long hiatus, the program was relaunched in 2017 in partnership with the Indy Public Safety Foundation and the Indianapolis Foundation.

“We restarted the program to funnel qualified candidates into the police department,” says Officer Christine Mannina, who oversees the program. “It gives young people an opportunity to be around the inner-workings of a police department and really see if this is a career they want.”

The department accepts cadets ages 18-24 who are or will be enrolled in college and are interested in a law enforcement career. The paid, part-time positions also fill workload gaps within IMPD.

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Panhandling in Indianapolis

Posted on June 25, 2018 by Leslie Wells

While many cities are concerned with the human and economic impacts of panhandling, scarce research has gathered information directly from those who panhandle. Researchers at the Indiana University Public Policy Institute partnered with the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention, and Downtown Indy, Inc. for a pilot study to better understand those who panhandle.

Outreach staff for homeless service providers took to the streets of downtown Indianapolis on three separate days in June 2017, August 2017, and December 2017 during lunch and after-work hours. Of the 73 individuals approached who were panhandling, 49 agreed to participate in the survey. The findings are reflective of the self-reported information from those individuals and provide a better look who is panhandling in Downtown Indianapolis.

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Changing Course: From Law School to Criminal Justice

Posted on June 18, 2018 by Leslie Wells

“I came here wanting to go to law school. That was my ultimate goal.”

Antoine Burks knew his path. He knew he wanted to become a criminal lawyer. He had mapped out his course to success. To achieve his goal, Burks decided to leave Terre Haute and pursue a Criminal Justice degree from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IUPUI.

“I really, really enjoyed the topics and discussions in my criminal justice classes,” Burks says.

His plan would then have taken him to law school. But it didn’t take long before he realized that even though his dream looked good on paper, it wasn’t his passion.

“I want something that my heart is going to be in it, that I’m going to love doing,” Burks says. “I really want to do something where I can help people and make a difference.”

That’s when he decided to change course.

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