by Rebecca Sneed
The Hannibal-LaGrange University Criminal Justice Department had the privilege to host Colonel Bret Johnson, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, and Major Gregory Smith, commander of the Highway Patrol’s Field Operations Bureau, on Monday, April 11.
Every spring, the criminal justice department brings high-ranking professionals to campus to show students the practical applications of what they are learning in the classroom. Last year, HLGU had the pleasure of hosting Justice Mary Rhodes Russell of the Missouri Supreme Court.
Colonel Johnson, commander of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, was appointed to the position on May 1, 2015. As the commander of the Field Operations Bureau, Major Smith has authority over Missouri’s nine patrol troops, the aircraft division, and the water patrol division. Together, their presentation included general information about the Missouri State Highway Patrol but mainly focused on explaining the patrol’s role during the events of the rioting in Ferguson, MO that began in August 2014.
“It is critical our criminal justice majors explore a robust understanding of police procedure, use of force, body cameras, societal issues, and delinquency, media, etc.,” said Brady Sowers, criminal justice department chair, who believes these speaking events and presentations are not only beneficial but essential to criminal justice students.
“We teach several courses on policing, like Police Operations and Tactics and Policing in America, but also other courses where discussion of sociological hot-topic issues are ongoing, classes such as Criminology, Ethics for Criminal Justice Professionals, Family Violence, Crisis Intervention, etc.,” Sowers continued. “Our students get real-world insights into these issues from guests who have reached high levels in their careers and are ‘front-and-center,’ so to speak, on them.”
For more information on the event, or the HLGU Criminal Justice Department, contact Brady Sowers at 573-629-3065, or via email at bksowers@hlg.edu.