The Crusader

April 8, 2023 By bacw Leave a Comment

Why Criminal Justice Major?

Author: The Crusader Staff Writer, Anna Li

Have you ever wanted to be a police officer? an investigator? a lawyer? If so, you may want to major in criminal justice. The Criminal Justice program at Belmont Abbey College has been running since August of 2006. Their duty is to educate students about America’s criminal justice system and criminal behavior with the help of experienced professors. All professors have experience in criminal justice and help students see crime from different perspectives, including psychology, biology, and theology.

The Criminal Justice program began with the first Program director, Julia Beeman, PhD, who joined BAC in 2006. The program soon grew into a separate department in 2010. According to Dr. Beeman, this program stands out because “Every faculty member, in addition to being well credentialed academically, are all former practitioners. This helps students learn how theory and philosophy of the justice system are actually applied in law enforcement, courts, and corrections.”

When asked the question, “What do you think is special about the BAC Criminal Justice Department?” a professor that rejoined the school full-time in the fall of 2022, Ann Gleason J.D. answered, “Everyone in the department has actually worked in the criminal justice system. We have had prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, and law enforcement practitioners.” It shows the experience and value that all professors in the department have. It might be appealing to students who are considering this major; it certainly was for me when I was choosing the place to obtain my criminal justice degree.

On the path to graduating, there are opportunities for hands-on experience in different areas of work, related to the criminal justice field. These could also be extra advantageous as some could count for academic credit. There is a double benefit to this: the ability to test received knowledge as well as to assess and experience the framework of possible career paths. A few internship opportunities include the ability to work in local police departments. Moreover, it is also possible to complete an internship in different places that are more related to a student’s career choice. They can work with career advisors on campus to find the most fitting placement.

The Criminal Justice degree offers many different paths for the future. Potential job positions include: police officer, criminal investigator, forensic science technician, forensic accountant, and many more. This degree also provides opportunities to go to law school, if desired, with a good background of the criminal justice system in America.

A student graduating in Criminal Justice this upcoming May, with the goal of becoming a fraud investigator, Ashton Lunsford, answered the same question about what she thinks makes the program special. She said, “I really like that all the professors practiced their knowledge in the field. All of them are able to share useful knowledge and personal experiences as well as guide students through different perspectives.”

If criminal justice is your passion, you should consider joining the program!

This article was originally posted in the Spring of 2023, Issue 1 of The Crusader Newspaper. Download the full issue here.

April 7, 2023 By bacw Leave a Comment

Major and Minor Fair

Author: The Crusader Staff Writer, Ruby Foster

The Major and Minor Fair happened on a sunny afternoon, February 8th; this event allowed the student body to expand their horizons and step out of their comfort zones. There was a wide variety of different people and different departments to learn about. As questions flew about throughout the Haid theatre, more and more students were gaining knowledge on new subjects and new avenues in life.

Having this event be something that was required for all freshmen FYE classes was a very smart decision, as it gave a chance to give people insight into what the possibilities are. Most freshmen come into their college life not knowing what the options are for their future. The major and minor fair could have possibly suede someone’s mind about their future choices or given them an idea of what they want to do for their future.

Having minors presented at the fair was also a great benefit to those who have decided on their future plans. Adding a minor to your degree is very beneficial in many ways. Freshman Jada Foster put her two senses into the event and said, “The major and minor fair opened my eyes to possible minors that could go along with my major…I also enjoyed that you could go to any of the professors to talk about the specifics of each major.” With that being said, whether it be a language or a psychology minor to help better understand people and communicate with the world better, anything would be a step in the right direction.

All in all, if you did not make it to the major and minor fair this year, it is strongly recommended that you go next year!

This article was originally posted in the Spring of 2023, Issue 1 of The Crusader Newspaper. Download the full issue here.

April 6, 2023 By bacw Leave a Comment

Stimulating The Mind

Author: The Crusader Staff Writer, Noah Butcher

Elizabeth Bookwalter is my professor for PC 201 Introduction to Psychology. She is a new professor at the college as this is her second semester teaching here.

She is a very kind and great professor. She teaches a lot of interesting things like the sleep disorders and lobes of the brain.

Dr. Bookwalter has many interesting things about her. She can wiggle her ears, she and her husband have seven brothers, she is left-handed, and she can spin a basketball on her finger. She quotes, “I love being a life-long learner.”

So overall, Elizabeth Bookwalter is a great professor that is always happy to be here and has a good time teaching. I hope everyone takes a class from Professor Bookwalter.

This article was originally posted in the Spring of 2023, Issue 1 of The Crusader Newspaper. Download the full issue here.

April 5, 2023 By bacw Leave a Comment

Monastic Life: A Monks Perspective

Author: The Crusader Staff Writer, Sarah Bruton

Have you ever seen Brother James around campus or heard people talk about him? Brother James has been a monk here at Belmont Abbey since 2013. However, he wasn’t always a monk or Catholic. He became a monk 9 years ago on his journey to reconnect with God while living in Charleston, SC, as a merchant marine.

As a Benedictine monk here at Belmont, Brother James lives by the Benedictine Hallmarks and Traditions to live for God rather than himself. He demonstrates this daily as he is always trying to be involved in school activities and is also an excellent listener when needed. He lives his life to show the students here how appreciative the monks are to have us students attend the college they have built and want to spread knowledge to everyone.

Brother James states, “I became a monk to pursue the will of God because it’s a calling and gift and for yourself, for happiness. I was looking for more, and I wasn’t expecting it to be a monastery, but that is what God wanted me to have.” He also states, “Listening is the key component. I listen to people because I listen to God.” He gives spiritual direction, which is listening to the person and God and determining what God wants the person to hear and not what they want to hear by spiritually guiding them.

If you see a monk or Brother James around campus, go and talk to them and find out about their journey to Christ.

This article was originally posted in the Spring of 2023, Issue 1 of The Crusader Newspaper. Download the full issue here.

April 4, 2023 By bacw Leave a Comment

Student Voices: Compliments About Faculty!

Author: The Crusader Staff Writers

We asked students for compliments about professors and here are some of the responses:

Digital Humanities with Dr. Hutchinson and the social media class with Erin Jensen. Their teaching style is super futuristic and hands on learning with activities and interactive assignments.
Dr Beeman: She helped me through a difficult class and also helped me with personal issues, encouraging and giving options for me.
Father Chris: I struggled with his classes but he taught me so much and was entertaining while doing it, challenging me and my classmates every time.
Dr Jonathan Hayes is super fun and cares a lot about his students.
Mr. Beekwilder always makes sure to engage the classroom and ask us questions to keep us paying attention.
Mrs. Richards is one of my favorite professors because even though our class was at 8am she always came in energized and ready to teach.
Dr. Michael Watson, because he teaches the class in a very fun way (relate principles to real life) and he congratulated me on my midterm.
Professor Ward, he’s really funny and he speaks from experience.
Professor Buddy Motz enjoys what he teaches and it makes the class a lot more enjoyable.
Dr. Elizabeth Bookwalter seems to really enjoy what she talks about.
Dr. Patrick Wadden and Dr. Ian Crowe. These are my favorite professors this semester; they are very professional but still a lot of fun in class.
Ann Gleason explains the information well and makes the classes interesting.
Dr. Berbrick is an incredible professor who really engages her students with the content she is teaching, and she really cares about her students. She also responds quickly and is eager to help any student.
Dr. Troy Feay was passionate and engaging.
Dr. Ayala is one of my favorite teachers because she is very willing to help in anything you need even outside the classroom.
Dr. Dell’Isola is one of my favorite teachers because he is very supportive of the students learning and presents the information through a Catholic lens.
Dr. Tiwari and Dr. Menno because they know how to make the class fun and constantly keep students engaged in class.
Brad Frazer because he makes his class fun and enjoyable.
Jill Bloede they always bring so much energy to class ever time and they want you to succeed
Dr Zdansky: Challenges you in a good way