A new major at the University of Maine aims to help fill gaps in the state’s criminal justice system, from police officers to policy positions.
Starting this fall, the Orono campus will offer a bachelor of arts in criminal justice. The new major has been in the works since 2016, and the University of Maine System Board of Trustees approved it during a Jan. 13 meeting.
“There’s a huge need for people who are practitioners and experts in criminal justice in the state of Maine, and we strongly believe that this is going to partially fill that gap with well-educated students at the University of Maine,” Department of Sociology Chairperson Karyn Sporer said.
There is currently a criminal justice minor with a large number of students, many of whom will likely take on the major, Sporer said. She received two emails Tuesday morning alone from students wanting to add the major.
It will also help UMaine compete with other campuses across the country and bring in more students, she said.
“We suspect it’s going to have an immediate appeal to students,” Sporer said.
A degree is helpful but not needed to be a police officer, Bangor Sgt. Jason McAmbley said. The department takes people from all walks of life and trains them to be officers.
Right now, the Bangor Police Department is staffed pretty well, McAmbley said. But departments elsewhere in Maine are struggling to fill openings, as in Portland, which has 39 open positions.
Criminal justice students may go on to roles like victim service specialist, paralegal, border patrol agent, correction officer, substance use disorder counselor and more, UMaine said.
“We are going to come from the framework where the justice system is needed, but possibly needs some tweaks so that it is an equitable institution that treats all people equally,” Sporer said.
UMaine programs already work closely with the FBI, Maine State Police and other agencies, relationships Sporer said she plans to continue.
The new major will help the people doing work in the justice system understand the issues across the justice system and the realities of life people in the system experience, Sporer said.
“It is not a black and white issue,” she said. “It’s a very complex system.”
