Saint Leo Kicks Off Fall 1 Semester at Education Centers

Fall 1 Semester kicked off this week at Saint Leo's education centers as students were welcomed at teaching locations in seven states. The university will offer new classes and programs, as well as new events this semester, which ends October 14. Saint Leo WorldWide is registering now for Fall 2 Semester, which begins October 15. 

Saint Leo's Savannah Education Center has moved to a new location, 325 W. Montgomery Crossroads, Savannah, GA 31406. The university has served the Savannah area for more than 40 years and began offering classes at Hunter Army Airfield (HAAF) and Fort Stewart in 1975. For information about the Savannah center, email savannah@saintleo.edu or call (912) 352-8331.

The Ocala Education Center, 1930 S.W. 38th Ave., Ocala, FL, is offering students the opportunity to dig for clues and investigate a long "cold" case for the Ocala Police Department this fall. Cold Case Homicide (CRM 490) will be offered 5:30 to 8 p.m., Mondays.

"We are the only university in the United States that offers this undergraduate course wherein an actual cold case homicide is studied," said Dr. Robert J. Sullivan, assistant professor of criminal justice. "It is not a case study from a book, but an actual, and typically really old, homicide."

This will be the second time that Saint Leo has offered the Cold Case Homicide course at one of its education centers rather at the main campus in St. Leo, FL, north of Tampa. The first was at the Lakeland Education Center, and Saint Leo partnered with the Winter Haven (FL) Police Department.

Puppy Power!
The Ocala Education Center will offer another interesting course during the Fall 2 Semester: Interdisciplinary Approaches: Service & Therapy Animals (IDS 300). The College of Education and Social Services developed its first interdisciplinary animal assisted therapy course and offered it at the main campus in spring 2018.

The course provides an overview of how human-animal interactions (HAI) and the human-animal bond (HAB) can impact animals, society, and work with interdisciplinary helping professions. The course will take place 5:30 to 8 p.m. in Tuesdays, beginning October 16. Topics include: the social, physical and emotional/psychological impacts of HAI with interdisciplinary helping professions; educational benefits, therapeutic roles of animals; ethical and animal welfare considerations; and the connection between violence toward people and violence toward animals. The elective course is open to students in all disciplines.

Dr. Debra Mims, assistant professor of criminal justice, taught the spring classes regarding how therapy and service animals are used in criminal justice professions. She was joined by Dr. Rhonda Waddell and Dr. Nancy Wood, who incorporated social work and human services into the course. Mims, a retired law enforcement officer, brought colleagues to class to discuss cadaver search, apprehension of criminals, and search and rescue training.

"I'm a member of critical incident stress management teams, and we talked about dogs being used with stress teams, following police shootings, and other traumatic incidents," Mims said.

Other uses for therapy dogs include calming children in family court situations and helping calm crime victims who are being interviewed by law enforcement, Mims said.

Dr. Jenenne Valentino-Bottaro, human services faculty member, will teach the interdisciplinary course in Ocala.

The Ocala Education Center also will host a Criminal Justice Speaker Series during the 2018-2019 academic year. The series will take place 1 to 4 p.m. on the following Wednesdays:

September 19 – Saint Leo instructor Charlotte Braziel, retired FBI agent, Where's the Evidence?;

November 14 - Dr. Christine Sereni-Massinger, associate dean of Saint Leo's College of Education and Social Services, as well as being a retired judge, Testifying Made Easy;

February 6 - Elaine Terenzi, retired chief U.S. probation officer, Middle District of Florida, Stress Management for Law Enforcement; and,  

April 3 – Attorney Jack Jordan, Most Recent 4th, 5th and 6th Amendment Issues for Law Enforcement.
 

Those interested in more information, may email ocala@saintleo.edu or call (352) 671-3391.

Saint Leo's Chesapeake Education Center, is welcoming women who are serving or who are military veterans to an interest meeting for Delta Phi Chi Military Sorority, from 1 to 3 p.m., Saturday, September 8, at the center. Delta Phi Chi Sorority membership is extended to active duty, reserve, and National Guard members as well as veterans.

The Chesapeake Education Center also is hosting an interest meeting for the Chesapeake Student Government from 4 to 5 p.m., Wednesday, September 12. Those students interested in representing Chesapeake students are invited. Nominations for officers will be accepted.

Students who are small business owners are invited to participate in the Student Entrepreneurship Showcase at 5 p.m., Tuesday, September 25. Students are invited to network, socialize, and share ideas with classmates while promoting their small businesses. RSVP is requested by Friday, September 14. 

For more information about activities at Saint Leo's Chesapeake Education Center at chesapeake@saintleo.edu or call (757) 227-4450.

WorldWide opportunities
In addition to organizations at Saint Leo's education centers, Saint Leo WorldWide offers many virtual associations for students. These include: Sociology Association; Criminal Justice Association; Healthcare Management Association; Liberal Arts and Studies Association; Online Accounting Club; Business Association; Human Resource Association; Computer Science Association; and Psychology Association.

For more information about these groups, like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SaintLeoWorldwide/