Westminster College: Academics: Sociology & Criminal Justice Studies: Overview

Pictured above (left to right):Row One, Dr. Robert Buehner, Dr. Gary Lilly
Row Two, Dr. Kristenne Robison, Dr. Rena Zito, Mary Pitman (department secretary), Dr. Kristin Park

Hardball with Chris Matthews: Recapping the first week of the Sandusky trial

Robert Buehner, Jr. (interviewed in this clip) is a Westminster alumnus and Trustee. Dr. Buehner was the former D.A. for Montour County and will serve as an instructor in the Criminal Justice program this fall.

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Department Information

Westminster's Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice Studies is a lively place. The faculty pride ourselves on our quality teaching. Our classes use a variety of pedagogies that include experiential and service learning, field trips, guest speakers and role plays and simulations, on top of general class discussions. We offer a wide range of courses across both Sociology and Criminal Justice Studies. Beyond the foundational courses, Sociology electives include the Sociology of Gender, Minority-Majority Relations, Sociology of Sport, Sociology of Disability, Cultural Anthropology, Religion and Society, Medical Sociology and Social Change. Majors in Criminal Justice Studies gain a strong foundation in Sociology while focusing their elective courses in criminal justice studies. CJS courses are also open to Sociology students and include Deviance, Juvenile Delinquency, Criminology and Sociology of Law, as well as an internship in the criminal justice field. The department's faculty are also scholars who present and publish our work at professional conferences and in academic journals and books.

Sociology and Criminal Justice Studies majors engage in significant research through the two semester Capstone courses taken spring of the junior year and fall of the senior year. The Capstone classes shares a common sociological theme which students incorporate but they also have significant freedom in choosing their particular topic and methodologies. Some students have presented their research at Westminster's Annual Undergraduate Research Conference, at the yearly meeting of the National Conference on Undergraduate Research or at regional or national Sociological conferences.

Major/Minor in Sociology

Major/Minor in Criminal Justice Studies

Sociology and Criminal Justice Studies Courses

Mission Statement -- Sociology Program

The mission of the Sociology program at Westminster is to help students understand and practice the scientific study of human behavior as it is interpreted and experienced in groups. The systematic approach that sociology requires liberates students from individualistic and provincial mindsets and helps them to understand themselves and their society in new ways. Thus the sociological perspective is profoundly transformative. Our enterprise contributes to the larger vision and goals of the liberal arts with its emphasis on logical reasoning, critical reflection, clear written and oral communication, skilled group work, appreciation of pluralism and diversity, application of knowledge to solving social problems and cultivation of identity as both a local and global citizen. We achieve these learning goals using a variety of pedagogies focused on active engagement inside the classroom and in the larger society. As active scholars ourselves we enjoy modeling the process of discovery as we guide students in experiencing its satisfactions.

News

Westminster College Professor Attends Amish Conference

Wednesday, June 12, 2013
NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Dr. Kristin Park, Westminster College professor of sociology and chair of the department, attended the conference "Amish America: Plain Technology in a Cyber World" June 5-8 at Elizabethtown College.

05.18.2013 Westminster College Confers Degrees on More than 300 Graduates NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - More than 300 students earned diplomas during the 159th annual Westminster College commencement ceremonies Saturday.	05.15.2013 Westminster College Employees Honored for Years of Service NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Westminster College honored 49 employees for 1,020 years of combined service at a luncheon May 8 in the McKelvey Campus Center's Witherspoon Rooms.

05.14.2013 Westminster College Sociology/Criminal Justice Students Inducted into Alpha Kappa Delta NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Six Westminster College sociology and sociology/criminal justice majors and minors were inducted into the International Sociology Honorary Society Alpha Kappa Delta (AKD) on April 23.	04.30.2013 Westminster College Sociology and Criminal Justice Majors Accepted into American Sociological Association Honors Program NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Westminster College sociology/criminal justice and biology major Joseph Ritchie and criminal justice major Annalisa Ryding have been accepted into the Undergraduate Honors Program of the American Sociological Association (ASA).