Meet AIU Faculty/Staff

Rebekah Garrett might be an attorney, but she is the one who stands up to be judged several times each week - by her students in the Criminal Justice program at AIU Online.

"I love the material I get to teach, but I find the real joy of teaching is trying to bring this material to life in such a way that students really enjoy what they are learning," says Instructor Garrett.

Garrett says her students are as varied as the kinds of jobs available within the criminal justice field. "I have lots of students in the military as well as law enforcement professionals. I also have students looking for a complete career change and my students are all different ages." Most of Garrett's students are working full-time in addition to going to school.

Since Garrett has taught numerous Criminal Justice courses during her two-plus years as part of the AIU Online faculty, she says everything is always fresh. "Classes are always exciting. Each class brings different students with different questions and different goals," she says.

Garrett says she enjoys being an AIU Online Criminal Justice faculty member because the program gives students a strong foundation across the field. Some classes tackle what courts and attorneys can do with evidence, others address victim rights, the history of the legal system, legal procedures or even psychology. While an AIU Online Criminal Justice degree can lead to any number of career opportunities in the field, Garrett says she often finds students in the law-themed classes she teaches want to become victim/witness advocates or parole and probation officers.

Garrett jokes that her classes are applicable not only to future criminal justice positions, but also to pop culture. Explaining that many of her students like to watch primetime criminal justice-related shows like Law & Order, she says by the time many of her classes are over, students realize their favorite shows aren't as based in realty as they had previously thought. "They tell me that they watch these programs differently than they used to and are picking up on nuances that aren't correct."

Although it would be easy, not to mention engaging, to teach a lot of Law & Order-themed classes, Garrett turns to a different kind of resource more often: her own real world experience. An attorney, she graduated with her Juris Doctor (J.D.) from the University of Memphis; prior to earning her J.D., Garrett earned two B.A. degrees; one in Criminal Justice, the other in English.

As an attorney, Garrett has worked for information juggernaut LexisNexis. While at LexisNexis, she researched and analyzed approximately 2,000 landmark legal cases before summarizing them for use by other lawyers, law students, journalists, judges, paralegals and various others in the criminal justice field.

With this extensive case knowledge, Garrett is able to blend the theoretical and practical in her classes. "So much of what we learn in Criminal Justice is theory; it always makes it more interesting to bring in examples from real cases. It not only brings the material to life, but can also better help students understand."

While it might seem Instructor Garrett bringing her legal knowledge into the classroom would not benefit students working towards a Criminal Justice Bachelor's degree, she says that is not the case. "The Criminal Justice system is comprised of many different jobs that work together to achieve common goals," Garrett explains. "Studying cases, you see how everyone in the system works together, what each piece is responsible for and how everything is intertwined."

Although Garrett began her teaching career at a traditional brick and mortar university, she says she teaches exclusively online these days. "Teaching online is more challenging as I don't have the benefit of being able to look out at the class and see looks of confusion or understanding on students' faces. I enjoy that challenge though and have developed ways to make sure that everyone in a class, not just four or five students, is following along."

Garrett says she finds online teaching not only more challenging, but also more rewarding than teaching at traditional universities. "Online education attracts many students who aren't able to get a college education any other way. They can't give up full-time employment to go back to school. Being able to help students who are so driven to get their degree that they are willing to work all day, take care of family in the evening and then study late at night is an honor."

One of the best parts of the job in Garrett's eyes is hearing from former students. She says she frequently gets emails and phone calls from past students wanting her to write a letter of recommendation for a job they are applying for. "I love seeing where students' paths have taken them."

Garrett says these AIU Criminal Justice graduates' paths often include positions in the juvenile justice field, federal and state law enforcement and social services. "I'm always amazed at where the students can go. There are so many opportunities."

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