Public Safety Administration: Corrections Pathway A.A.S.

Emergency Services class
Program Code: A55480CO

Public Safety Administration: Corrections Pathway A.A.S.

The Public Safety Administration curriculum is designed to provide students, as well as practitioners, with knowledge and skills in the technical, managerial, and administrative areas necessary for entrance or advancement within various public safety and government organizations.

Course work in diverse subject areas includes public safety administration and education, inter-agency operations, crisis leadership, government, and agency financial management, professional standards, incident management, administrative law, and supervision while providing a streamlined pathway that recognizes the value of previously earned skill sets and credentials within the public safety sector.

Employment opportunities exist with fire or police departments, emergency management organizations, governmental agencies, industrial firms, correctional facilities, private industries, insurance organizations, educational organizations, security and protective organizations, and self-employment opportunities.

Courses in this program

Course Code Course Credit Hours Link to course details

This course provides an orientation to the campus resources and academic skills necessary to achieve educational objectives. Emphasis is placed on an exploration of facilities and services, study skills, library skills, self-assessment, wellness, goal-setting, and critical thinking. Upon completion, students should be able to manage their learning experiences to successfully meet educational goals.

This course is designed to develop the ability to produce clear writing in a variety of genres and formats using a recursive process. Emphasis includes inquiry, analysis, effective use of rhetorical strategies, thesis development, audience awareness, and revision. Upon completion, students should be able to produce unified, coherent, well-developed essays using standard written English. This is a Universal General Education Transfer Component (UGETC) course that satisfies English Composition.

This course introduces the National Incident Management System (NIMS). Topics include integrating command and control systems, maintaining communication within command and control systems, and using NIMS procedures. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate knowledge of key concepts necessary for operating within the National Incident Management System.

This course is designed to engage students in complex and realistic situations involving the mathematical phenomena of quantity, change and relationship, and uncertainty through a project and activity-based assessment. Emphasis is placed on authentic contexts which will introduce the concepts of numeracy, proportional reasoning, dimensional analysis, rates of growth, personal finance, consumer statistics, practical probabilities, and mathematics for citizenship.

This course includes an overview of the role of the public administrator in government and an examination of the development and implementation of public policy. Topics include public personnel administration and management, decision making, public affairs, ethics, organizational theories, budgetary functions within governmental agencies, and other governmental issues. Upon completion, students should be able to explain the functions of government in society and in the lives of people composing that society.

Course Code Course Credit Hours Link to course details

This course, the second in a series of two, is designed to teach professional communication skills. Emphasis is placed on research, listening, critical reading and thinking, analysis, interpretation, and design used in oral and written presentations. Upon completion, students should be able to work individually and collaboratively to produce well-designed business and professional written and oral presentations. Students entering this course should be able to demonstrate in-depth knowledge in a technical field and should anticipate interdepartmental evaluation of course projects.

This course covers federal and state laws that affect emergency service personnel in the event of a natural disaster or terrorist incident. Topics include initial response and long-term management strategies, with an emphasis on legal and ethical considerations and coordination between local, state, and federal agencies. Upon completion, students should have an understanding of the role of private industry, government agencies, public policies, and federal/state declarations of disasters in emergency situations.
 

This course introduces local governmental financial principles and practices. Topics include budget preparation and justification, revenue policies, statutory requirements, taxation, audits, and the economic climate. Upon completion, students should be able to comprehend the importance of finance as it applies to the operation of a department.

This course provides an overview of fire department operative services. Topics include finance, staffing, equipment, code enforcement, management information, specialized services, legal issues, planning, and other related topics. Upon completion, students should be able to understand concepts and apply fire department management and operations principles.

This course is a study of the origins, development, structure, and functions of American national government. Topics include the constitutional framework, federalism, the three branches of government including the bureaucracy, civil rights and liberties, political participation and behavior, and policy formation. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of the basic concepts and participatory processes of the American political system. This is a Universal General Education Transfer Component (UGETC) course that satisfies Social/Behavioral Sciences.

Course Code Course Credit Hours Link to course details

This course introduces the use of critical thinking skills in the context of human conflict. Emphasis is placed on evaluating information, problem-solving, approaching cross-cultural perspectives, and resolving controversies and dilemmas. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate orally and in writing the use of critical thinking skills in the analysis of appropriate texts. This course has been approved for transfer under the CAA as a general education course in Humanities/Fine Arts.

This course is designed to be an overview of the major functions of management. Emphasis is placed on planning, organizing, controlling, directing, and communicating. Upon completion, students should be able to work as contributing members of a team utilizing these functions of management. This course has been approved for transfer under the CAA as a pre-major and/or elective course requirement.

Course Code Course Credit Hours Link to course details

This course is a study of methods and techniques used to determine the effectiveness of public programs. Emphasis is placed on the concept of ecology and environmental impact, informal groups and information networks, and the relationship between the public and private sectors. Upon completion, students should be able to analyze case studies with the use of political analysis techniques.

This course covers the basic techniques of successful grant writing. Topics include concept development, funding sources research, and writing skills relevant to the grants process. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate a basic understanding of the grants process.

This course introduces the functions of personnel/human resource management within an organization. Topics include equal opportunity and the legal environment, recruitment and selection, performance appraisal, employee development, compensation planning, and employee relations. Upon completion, students should be able to anticipate and resolve human resource concerns.

This course provides basic knowledge of self-improvement techniques as related to success in the professional world. Topics include positive human relations, job-seeking skills, and projecting a positive self-image. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate competent personal and professional skills necessary to get and keep a job.

This course offers applied Spanish for the workplace to facilitate basic communication with people whose native language is Spanish. Emphasis is placed on oral communication and career-specific vocabulary that targets health, business, and/or public service professions. Upon completion, students should be able to communicate at a functional level with native speakers and demonstrate cultural sensitivity.

Elective:  Select three credits from courses with the CJC, EMS, or FIP prefix.  See advisor for available courses.  

Course Code Course Credit Hours Link to course details

This course stresses the principles of managing a modern emergency medical service system. Topics include structure and function of municipal governments, EMS grantsmanship, finance, regulatory agencies, system management, legal issues, and other topics relevant to the EMS manager. Upon completion, students should be able to understand the principles of managing emergency medical service delivery systems.

This course covers the history, major philosophies, components, and current practices and problems of the field of corrections. Topics include historical evolution, functions of the various components, alternatives to incarceration, treatment programs, inmate control, and other related topics. Upon completion, students should be able to explain the various components, processes, and functions of the correctional system.  This course has been approved for transfer under the CAA as a pre-major and/or elective course requirement.

This course introduces critical incident intervention and management techniques as they apply to operational criminal justice practitioners. Emphasis is placed on the victim/offender situation as well as job-related high stress, dangerous, or problem-solving citizen contacts. Upon completion, students should be able to provide insightful analysis of emotional, violent, drug-induced, and other critical and/or stressful incidents that require field analysis and/or resolution.
 

This course covers liability issues for the criminal justice professional. Topics include civil rights violations, tort liability, employment issues, and other related topics. Upon completion, students should be able to explain civil trial procedures and discuss contemporary liability issues.

This course is designed to examine the issues and challenges facing law enforcement today through the study of real-world scenarios. Topics include professionalism, leadership, communication, diversity, and community relationships. Upon completion, students should be able to exhibit leadership abilities, demonstrate the importance of verbal and non-verbal communication, and display the professionalism and decorum required of public safety personnel.
 

Total Credit Hours Required:
66

PST-120 NCDPS Correct'l Officer Train (credits) may substitute for CJC-141, CJC-225, CJC-232/CJC-233.

Students who have successfully completed a curriculum offering of Basic Law Enforcement Training within 10 years of their application to the Criminal Justice Technology Program will receive credit for CJC-121, CJC-131, CJC-132, CJC-221, and CJC-231.

Curriculum is based on the 2022-23 catalog.

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