One of the biggest understatements of our time is that the COVID-19 pandemic may have changed things. If these fraught days have reminded us of one lesson, it is that we cannot take anything for granted. Quite simply, most everything has changed.

By necessity, the pandemic forced a universal creation and modification of contingency plans. These plans included the need for remote technology more than at any time in history. Much of how we now work and learn has been transformed by what could be termed “robust remoting,” which is the extensive use of the technology of electronic communication to accomplish what had previously been done face to face. For tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), the immediate need for and incorporation of robust remoting has permeated many day-to-day operations.

In the criminal justice (CJ) programs at TCUs, these paradigm shifts have been particularly acute. Quite simply, many elements of CJ instruction, such as searches, de-escalation tactics, and basic investigations, are more easily demonstrated in person. The CJ programs of Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College (KBOCC) in the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and Sitting Bull College (SBC) on the Standing Rock reservation are two examples where tribal college students raced into robust remoting. There has been trial and error to best meet student needs within this new framework. Yet, in large part these programs have seen success. This is because students have defined their own user experience: what works, what does not work. TCUs’ responsiveness to student feedback will inform successful decisions on how to shift coursework online.

The experiences of the KBOCC and SBC criminal justice programs represent a general shift toward robust remoting in the CJ field. While these institutions offer a small sample size, the complications associated with the emergence into digital technology are amplified at TCUs. Accordingly, a closer look at these two TCU CJ programs may provide insight into shifts in the broader CJ field. These institutions have taken steps toward enabling the success and enhanced preparation of students for shifts plaguing the CJ profession more generally through two steps: (1) creating baseline remoting skills, and (2) adapting to individual learning styles and needs. These two steps, which has led to student success in robust remoting in these two CJ programs, may translate well into the criminal justice industry at large.

CREATING A BASELINE OF REMOTING SKILLS

Successful robust remoting begins with an introduction to technology, which is among the many key functions of TCUs. Criminal justice students are, at the foremost, students. Some enter the collegiate environment with a considerable degree of tech ability. But for others, especially those returning to school after a hiatus, this environment is a first real foray into computing due to a multitude of factors, including disparities of broadband access in rural areas (Duarte et al., 2021).

In 2015, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) published a seminal report entitled Student Success at Tribal Colleges and Universities: Strategies that Work. The case studies detailed that through two main factors—personal attention and culturally relevant content—TCUs can overcome postsecondary education barriers in communities where a need for increased student success “is one of the greatest single challenges” (His Horse Is Thunder, 2015). Both KBOCC and SBC have been actively engaging in many of the best practices outlined in the report. Both are rural schools dramatically affected by the need to resort to online learning, and both have CJ programs which stress baseline remoting skills that work well in their tribal communities.

At KBOCC, the criminal justice program currently consists of an Associate of Arts degree where students begin on a path that follows the “no fail” semester strategy outlined in the 2015 AIHEC report, incorporating a strong focus on fundamental skillsets. These strategies lead to the development of a base set of skills in robust remoting.

From the start, new students at KBOCC are scheduled into a block of general education requirement courses, including basics needed for their CJ coursework such as composition classes and a college success seminar. While ostensibly about writing, composition courses offer a deep dive into using many of the computer skills foundational to report drafting in the criminal justice field, such as acclimation to electronic expression, importance of formatting/presentation, and effective use of editing tools. Due to the pandemic, some new students had to start their college careers online, which immediately brought students into computing. KBOCC was able to adapt to the changing environment through a first-year course alternative to the college success seminar that addressed the present online needs. By keeping an evidence-based order of operations for degree plans and pivoting to new coursework as needed, the KBOCC program has maintained a steady system for student progression, even as the world continues to shift.

At SBC, criminal justice students start off similarly. In their first semester, students are placed in a block schedule with coursework centered on collegiate fundamentals, which includes composition classes, a separate computer course, and an introductory college course called “First Year Learning.” During the pandemic, SBC, like KBOCC, used those classes to introduce emerging technologies so that students would be better prepared for concentration requirements.

Having been recently accredited to offer a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice in addition to its longstanding associate’s in criminal justice and AAS paralegal/lay advocate degrees, the SBC CJ program faced a couple different hurdles. Introduction of this higher degree meant some students were returning years after completing their initial degree. Some had not necessarily undergone the technology training classes were set to provide. The program worked to find ways to make all materials accessible via an online learning platform and provided multiple opportunities to interact with other students, which allowed a degree of additional peer support.

The adaptations made by the criminal justice programs at KBOCC and SBC in response to increased remoting and state-ofthe- art technology largely align with recent shifts within criminal justice occupations. Many police departments, for example, have had to change to electronic state reporting and many veterans of police forces did not enter into the profession with that training. These changes can lead to challenges according to an article in Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, which notes technology acquisition and deployment decisions are now high priority topics for police (Koper et al., 2014).

CJ students at Sitting Bull College conduct investigations at a mock crime scene. Replicating virtually such activities presents challenges for any criminal justice program.

Tribal college CJ programs recognize that the pandemic exacerbated the need for this fieldwork skillset. At KBOCC, where all instructors have substantial corrections expertise, the emergence of new technologies has required the teaching a new set of skills for contraband interdictions in jail and prison environments. Likewise, at SBC, where CJ program faculty specialize in tribal law, students worked with a regional tribal court system and law firm in modernizing their judicial process by uploading previous orders into an electronic database. For students planning to head into CJ careers, exposure to these developing technologies and the acquisition of this robust remoting experience is not only helpful for efficiency, it is quickly becoming instrumental to success in the criminal justice workplace. These TCU criminal justice programs have found ways to parlay the classroom changes brought about by COVID into opportunities to develop teaching practices, and to introduce and build competencies in new technological landscapes relevant to contemporary CJ careers.

INDIVIDUAL LEARNING STYLES AND MOTIVATING FACTORS

While the move from active participation in a face-to-face classroom setting to online education may resemble the shifting work experience in many criminal justice professional settings, the online environment can be at odds with the learning styles of students interested in these particular careers. Many CJ students seek out active professions, and studies have shown that they are often kinesthetic learners versus verbal or linguistic learners (Gutierrez et al., 2006). Separately, one study in the Bay Mills Indian Community noted TCU students also tend to “perceive information best through concrete experiences rather than abstract conceptualization” (Carruthers, 1990). Tribal college CJ programs thus serve as a confluence of two student populations which may be less interested in online learning and working remotely. Despite these hurdles, through listening to students and the needs they express these programs have found ways to help them successfully engage in remote learning.

Even through the initial wave of the pandemic, the CJ programs at SBC and KBOCC saw interest and numbers maintain or grow. In the spring of 2022, Sitting Bull College saw the largest CJ class enrollment of the past decade. Meanwhile, KBOCC is expanding its focus, per the college’s strategic plan for 2020-2025, and is now looking to develop and increase opportunities for the college, community, and tribe by improving student recruitment, retention, and persistence.

For CJ program instructors, classroom mock exercises and fieldwork experiences were a cornerstone of CJ learning prior to the pandemic. Creative and innovative practices are required to expand such experiences into the digital sphere. At KBOCC and SBC, these practices have included transposing classes structured around rich interactive experiences onto online platforms. The issues that CJ students at both KBOCC and SBC faced early in their degrees when the pandemic hit were quite similar. Learning from these students, the colleges adapted to foster growth through robust remoting.

On the KBOCC campus, instructors are finding new ways to engage students and introduce materials. Utilizing innovative icebreakers developed by program faculty is one technique that has translated into the online space, where it can be difficult to foster connections otherwise. At SBC, faculty have brought in numerous guest speakers to engage with students. This type of engagement would not be possible on the rural Standing Rock reservation without the technological updates such as in-class web conferencing and increased computer and internet access. Students have heard from multiple attorneys general and other tribal court professionals and law enforcement officers, both local and from tribal nations across the continent. This is thanks in part to the general increased awareness of web conferencing platforms, the ease of scheduling, and the lack of travel issues, as well as other robust remoting advantages.

On-site demonstrations can be keystones to CJ teaching. At KBOCC, one such example is contraband search techniques, where students watch and then replicate in-person actions. At SBC, plaster cast molding of a footprint, which is modeled and then repeated, is another successful on-site demonstration. These types of demonstrations do not necessarily translate effectively to a virtual environment, particularly for students who learn kinesthetically.

In a robust remoting application, there are a couple ways to replicate these experiences. At SBC, a majority of coursework was completed remotely during the early months of the pandemic. Lab activities, such as preserving impression evidence (footprint casts) and wildlife crime scene analysis, were delayed until the end of the semester and completed mostly outdoors at in-person group meetings. At KBOCC, contraband search techniques became part of both prerecorded and live materials where students could follow along at home.

Virtual learning also blurs the lines between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. In the classroom, CJ students experience the real-time motivating factors of their instructor and peers and and their presence in a learning environment. Commonly, work at home and the transition to online learning relinquished those motivations. In this way, students learned two essential aptitudes: positive group dynamics and increased ability to work independently.

Whether CJ curricula is in person or virtual, remaining true to the tribal college’s cultural mission is paramount.

Professional criminal justice personnel workplaces have historically preferred in-person meetings. The success of these TCU criminal justice programs in adapting to a changing technological climate offers new and helpful insights for the field.

MOVING FORWARD

The pandemic pushed the criminal justice and education fields into increased technological usage, and criminal justice programs at Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College and Sitting Bull College followed suit. Through trial and error, both programs discovered creative ways to harness technology for instruction. This was done with the consideration of students’ learning styles and technological competencies. The success of these two programs in engaging in robust remoting during the pandemic and moving forward is due to students determining their own success and instructors finding new and innovative ways to respond to student need.

Cara DiMare, JD is an attorney specializing in tribal and federal Indian law; Joe Bouchard worked at a maximum security correctional facility and is now criminal justice faculty at Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College.

REFERENCES

Duarte, M.E., Vigil-Hayes, M., Zegura, E., Belding, E., Masara, I., & Nevarez, j.C. (2021). As a Squash Plant grows: Social Textures of Sparse Internet Connectivity in Rural and Tribal Communities. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, 28(3), 1-16.

His Horse Is Thunder, D. (2015). Student Success at Tribal Colleges and Universities: Strategies that Work. American Indian Higher Education Consortium. Retrieved from http://aihec.org/our-stories/studentSuccess.htm

Koper, C.S., Lum, C., & Willis, J.J. (2014). Optimizing the Use of Technology in Policing: Results and Implications from a Multi-site Study of the Social, Organizational, and Behavioral Aspects of Implementing Police Technologies. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 8(2), 212-221.

Gutierrez, D., Perri, K., & Quackenbush, A. (2006). Exploring the Multiple Intelligences of Community College Students Enrolled in Online Courses. Journal of College Teaching & Learning, 3(11), 1663.

Carruthers, S. (1990). Learning Styles and Native American Students: A Study of Learning Preferences of Students at Bay Mills Community College. Tribal College: Journal of American Indian Higher Education, 1(3), 21.