In February I heard about this program called “UHP DISCOVER” and was not interested in taking part at all. Well, things changed a few weeks before I started completing research with Dr. Hayes from the Criminal Justice department after attending a speaker series for extra credit. 

The research I was completing was about biased homicides and hate crimes. At first, I was really stressed about the work. I was sad after reading about the horrible events that happened, but I realized that this is what I want to do in my future. I want to put these horrible offenders in prisons. 

 

When I finally got in the groove with my role in the homicide research, I decided to apply for UHP Discover. I applied for three research opportunities and Dr. Hayes offered me her slot since I was new enough to the research team and could participate through UHP Discover.

 

What did the experience involve?

 

UHP DISCOVER was a way for me to get more involved with research. I was paired with Dr. Hayes and completed my duties each week. This research program was unlike most research opportunities because this was not STEMM research like most think of when they think of research. Each week I would use google to either search a name that was given to me, which is either the offender’s or victim’s and find what I could. Once I found a case or person, I read all the articles about what occurred. Once finding all the information, I created an open-source document and completed some coding. 

 

What did I learn from the experience?

Most importantly from a research point of view, I found that bystanders and witnesses often do not intervene when they witness a crime, which I find shocking because their actions could save a life or put a criminal behind bars. I also learned how to code my findings in a spreadsheet, how to pick out the valuable information from news articles, and how to work well with researchers who have more experience with researching than I do. 

 

 

How has the experience impacted me?

            This experience impacted me in a handful of ways. I became more independent and confident in my work. I also have resources and a new career path option for me. Researching hate crimes and being a part of this program has allowed me to think about my future. This project has kept me interested in the crime and law. I have also searched for different courses to take here at UC that were similar to this project. I am currently taking (Fall 2021) a victimology course that is taught by Dr. Hayes after completing this project. 

 

Here is my presentation that I presented at the UHP Discover meeting with all of the students who took part in the program.