Course Catalog
Students begin the program with core courses that pave the way for more complex learning. They then progress into the concentration courses that delve further into their specific area of interest and expand their scope of learning. After successfully completing both the core and concentration courses, students use the skills learned within the program in a practical problem-solving Capstone Project.
Select a course below for more details:
- Core Courses:
- Concentration Course:
- Capstone Project:
Criminal Justice Leadership and Management - 4 credits
This course combines theory and practice by encouraging students to learn traditional and contemporary leadership theories and apply them in analyzing the behavior of leaders, colleagues, and subordinates in the criminal justice system. Through a variety of readings, cases, and exercises, students will examine effective leadership models. Topics include the evolution of leadership; the roles of strategy and vision in transformational change; the development of leaders; the leadership responsibilities of creating effective teams, organizations, and cultures; the exploration of different leadership styles; and current popular approaches to leadership theory.
Professional and Organizational Ethics - 4 credits
This course explores and analyzes the relationships among stakeholders in the criminal justice system, and the expectations of ethical decision-making and behaviors among leaders within the organization and the system. Students will consider the moral implications and social effects of the administration of criminal justice in a free society, and the tension that exists between achieving desirable outcomes and the means by which they are achieved. Topics include theories of morality; analysis of ethical decision-making; interaction and conflicts among personal, professional, and organizational values; the effect of cultural diversity on individual and group values; current issues in criminal justice policy and practice; and how leaders in the field of criminal justice can maintain accountability in an atmosphere of conflicting stakeholder interests.
Managerial Accounting and Finance for Leadership - 4 credits
This course equips students to more effectively and ethically lead and influence in situations where financial issues play a key role, with particular attention to public fiscal management. This course serves as an introduction to the concepts and principles of financial management and managerial accounting, focusing on the development and use of budgets for planning and control, demonstrating accountability, and establishing priorities within an organization. Students will explore the tools and techniques available to maximize the use of scarce resources, and the implications of public funding and cost accounting for programs and initiatives within the organization.
Organizational Communication, Conflict Resolution and Negotiation - 4 credits
This course explores the psychological contract, as it takes many forms possible among individuals and groups, from the perspective of exercising leadership in the management of these relationships. Students study group formation and development, as well as the intricacies of coaching, mentoring, and conflict resolution. The impact of organizational behavior on leadership effectiveness is explored. Organizational communication, including formal and informal communication, is analyzed to determine the relationship between communication and organizational satisfaction and effectiveness. Topics include preparing for a negotiation, understanding individual preferences, identifying ethical and cross-cultural issues, and determining when and how to utilize available outside resources. Students assess the importance of coaching and open communication when inspiring individuals to overcome barriers to peak performance.
Criminal Justice Policy and Program Evaluation - 4 credits
This course addresses the relationship between the establishment of policy and its implementation in programs within criminal justice organizations. Methods for evaluating programs and using the results to further inform policy development and maintain public accountability are reviewed and discussed. Well known criminal justice program evaluation studies will be critiqued and students will design evaluation research projects.
Community Theory and the Criminal Justice System - 4 credits
This course examines the role of criminal justice organizations as components of their communities, from the perspective of political, social, and economic networks. Topics such as the intersection of the criminal justice system with systems that attend to health, youth and families, and national security are discussed. The impact of criminal victimization and attributes of communities that foster crime are examined in detail, along with alternative scenarios and strategies for promoting positive change at the community level. International perspectives on policing and the administration of justice are included.
Criminal Justice Research - 4 credits
This course develops the student's ability to conduct meaningful research and to analyze and use the results of research to contribute to the health of the organization and the system. Focus is on the methods of collecting, analyzing, and disseminating criminal justice research. The course is designed to prepare students to understand how research supports decision-making, and methods for designing research that yields valid and relevant information. Students will analyze the translation of research findings to policy, and how to access information resources to support research.
Criminal Justice Critical Issues - 4 credits
This course explores the foundational issues of the role of criminal justice in society; the impact of philosophies of "justice" on providing leadership within the criminal justice system; the human, technical, and structural dimensions of justice administration; and critical issues facing criminal justice organizations today. In this course, students will understand issues of culturally responsive leadership, navigating in complex environments with diverse stakeholders, and working with diverse groups/stakeholders to build a shared vision, establish shared goals, and develop a strategic plan, including detailed action plans.
Master's Capstone Project - 4 credits
The culminating project for the Master of Science in Criminal Justice Leadership will be the completion of a master's thesis or project. This will be either a major research paper or a client-based project that explores, in-depth, a criminal justice topic selected by the student, with guidance from their advisor.
The purpose of the capstone is to provide students with the opportunity to research and analyze a public policy issue and to demonstrate their graduate level mastery of the subjects they have studied, as well as the skills they have acquired during their two-year course of study.
The capstone project will give students the chance to focus on a subject of particular interest to them and pursue it in a rigorous and thorough manner. Whether their interests run to international affairs, the political process, the environment, the media, healthcare policy, the nonprofit sector, the criminal justice system, or some other area, they can use their thesis or project to immerse themselves in exploring their topic. Students are eligible to enroll in the capstone course upon completion of 32 credits.
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The OnlineNEC Experience
New England College (NEC) has a rich tradition of academic excellence. Our online programs are designed for professionals who have already achieved success in their careers and who want to enrich their knowledge with advanced study.
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