Course Information
Faculty Information
Course Title: Introduction to Criminology
Name: Jorge Pierrott
Course Number: CRJ 270
Email: jpierrott@wnc.edu
Course Section: 1001
Credit Hours: 3 credits
Prerequisite: CRJ 101 or with instructor’s permission
Class days & times: Mondays – 7:00 pm – 9:45 pm
Instructor Background:
Present: Sergeant, Department of Public Safety, Division of Parole and
Probation - Intensive Supervision Unit: House Arrest, Gangs, Intensive
Supervision and Fugitive Apprehension.
Law enforcement officer since 2000
Carson City Sheriff’s Office
 Patrol Deputy
 SWAT Team Leader
 Gang Unit
 Training Unit
 Grant Writer
 Community Liaison
Nevada Department of Public Safety
 Training Officer
 Corporal
 Probation and Parole Officer
 Dignitary Protection for Governor Brian Sandoval and his family
 Parole and Probation Sergeant
 Nevada Advisory Commission on the Administration of Justice –
Commissioner – State representative for the Division of Parole and
Probation
19 years teaching experience Western Nevada College, DPS Training
Academy, DPS Parole and Probation.
Education: BA in Public Administration for Law Enforcement
Presently working on Masters of Science, Public Administration with an
emphasis in Criminal Justice.
Dean and/or Department
Contact Information:
Wendy Tierney, Administrative Assistant
Career and Technical Education Division
(775) 445-4272
Sexual Harassment:
Western Nevada College does not tolerate sexual harassment. Any student
with difficulties relating to sexual harassment should bring the matter to
the attention of the WNC Affirmative Action Officer.
ADA Accommodation:
Qualified students with documented disabilities have the right to free
accommodations to ensure equal access to educational opportunities at
Western Nevada College. For assistance and clarification of services
provided under the ADA, contact the Disabled Student Services Office,
located in the Carson Campus, Bristlecone building, Room 103)
Academic Integrity:
Software Piracy:
Computer Virus Protection:
A student has an obligation to exhibit honesty in carrying out academic
assignments. A student would be in violation of this obligation if the
student cheats on a test or plagiarizes. Violations of academic integrity will
be addressed per the criteria in the college catalog. Plagiarized papers will
earn a student an “F” for a semester grade.
Law strictly prohibits unauthorized copying of software purchased by
LSCS for use in laboratories. Administration will take appropriate
disciplinary action against anyone violating copyright laws.
Computer viruses are, unfortunately, a fact of life. Using storage media
on more than one computer creates the possibility of infecting
computers and diskettes with a computer virus. This exposes the
computers of the campus, your personal computer, and any others you
may be using to potentially damaging viruses. The campus has
aggressive anti-virus procedures in place to protect its computers, but
cannot guarantee that a virus might not temporarily infect one of its
machines. It is your responsibility to protect all computers under your
control and use and ensure that each storage devices you use, whenever
or wherever you use it, has been scanned with anti-virus software. Since
new viruses arise continually, your anti-virus software must be kept
current. And, since no anti-virus software will find every virus, keeping
copies of data (backups) is extremely important.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is designed to introduce students to the field of criminology, providing an overview of the issues
involved in defining, measuring, and explaining crime. Students will learn about the field of criminology,
examine general characteristics of crime and criminals, review early and contemporary theories which attempt
to explain criminal behavior, and discuss crime in the modern world.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Students who successfully complete this course will be able to understand the basic theories, patterns, and
typologies used in criminology, and will have a basic grounding that will provide a foundation for more
advanced courses in the field. Upon successfully completing this course, students will be able to:
 explain the concepts of law, crime, and criminology, and understand the differences between criminology
and criminal justice
 discuss the criminal law and its processes
 be able to understand, evaluate, and critique the various theories of crime causation, and understand the
policy implications of each theory
 understand the various types of criminal behavior and identify the characteristics of different types of
crimes
 apply their understanding of criminological theories to explaining specific types of criminal behavior
REQUIRED TEXT
Textbook: “Criminology Today An Integrative Introduction (7th Edition) Prentice Hall Publisher
By: Frank Schmalleger, Ph. D.
ISBN: 13: 978-0-13-349553-9
ISBN: 10-0-13-349553-1
READING ASSIGNMENTS
Reading assignments will be listed in the Class Calendar.
ATTENDANCE
To gain the most from this course, it is essential that you attend class regularly. Exams will include both text
and lecture material, and not all lecture material is in the text. The material in this course is complex and
repeated absences will make it difficult, if not impossible, for the student to master essential information.
Arriving late or leaving early, in addition to resulting in lost class time for the student, can also be extremely
disruptive to the class; please be considerate of your classmates. Additionally, you will be graded on your class
participation to discussions brought up during class.
METHODS OF STUDY FOR THE COURSE
All course exam questions can be located in the text. Students can better prepare for examinations by
reviewing the summary section, identifying each key term in the chapter and by answering all the review
questions at the end of each chapter.
EXAMINATIONS
There are fifteen end of the chapter one hour examinations. Examinations will be listed in the Class Calendar.
Review the class calendar to ensure you are prepared for the examinations.
GRADING
Examinations will be graded and posted in the class gradebook the following week after the examination. All
written assignments will be graded within a week after the paper is submitted.
ASSIGNMENT 1: INTRODUCTION PAPER
Your first assignment is a short personal biography. This paper, like all assignments, must be written using
proper English and grammar with a minimum of 500 words. There will be substantial loss of points for failing
to write the minimum amount of words required.
ASSIGNMENT 2: MID-TERM PAPER
Students will write a paper on one of the following topics:
 Evidence Based Criminology and the Effect on the Criminal Justice System
 The Effects of Social Policy on Criminal Justice Agencies
 Social Development and Criminal Behavior
Students must provide the instructor their chosen topic by week three of the course. This 800 to 1000 words
paper (approximately 4 to 5 pages not including the cover page and bibliography) must be written using proper
English and grammar in APA writing style. The paper must include a cover page and bibliography with at least
5 references. All direct quotations must be within quotation marks and cited by either footnote or endnotes.
Un-cited material is considered plagiarism and will result in an “F” for the course. No more than 15% of your
paper can be quoted or previously published material.
FINAL PAPER
You will write a final paper describing the history, process, effect and progression of the study of Criminology
in the United States. This will give you an opportunity to share what you’ve learned in the class.
Twenty-five percent (25%) of the overall grade for this course is based on the final paper. The due date is listed
on the calendar.
The 1250 to 1500 words final paper (approximately 5 to 6 pages not including the cover page and bibliography)
needs to be written using proper English grammar in APA writing style. The paper must include a cover page
and bibliography with at least 7 references. All direct quotations must be within quotation marks and cited by
either footnote or endnotes. Un-cited material is considered plagiarism and will result in an “F” for the course.
No more than 15% of your paper can be quoted or previous published material.
FINAL GRADES
Grades are not “given” by the instructor. They are earned by the student’s academic performance. Grades
will be based on points earned on the exams and research/reaction paper and autobiography.
Class Participation/Attendance
Introduction and Mid-Term Paper
Final Paper
Examination
TOTAL
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
95-100
90-94
88-89
84-87
80-83
78-79
74-77
70-73
68-69
64-67
60-63
Failure
Week 1
August 25, 2014
ASSIGNMENTS
10%
30%
25%
35%
100%
GRADING POINT VALUES
4.0
3.7
3.3
3.0
2.7
2.3
2.0
1.7
1.3
1.0
0.7
0.00
CLASS CALENDAR
Course overview and introductions
Chapter 1 – Course Lecture
Assignments:
 Read Chapter 1
 Introduction Paper – Due date: September 8, 2014
Week 2 - September 1, 2014
Week 3
September 8, 2014
Labor Day Holiday – College Closed – No class
Chapter 2 – Course Lecture
Assignment due:
 Introduction Paper
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 2
Week 4
September 15, 2014
Chapter 3 – Course Lecture
Chapters 1 and 2 Examination
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 3
Week 5
September 22, 2014
Chapter 4 – Course Lecture
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 4
Chapter 5 – Course Lecture
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 5
Week 6
September 29, 2014
Week 7
October 6, 2014
Chapter 6 – Course Lecture
Chapters 3, 4 and 5 Examination
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 6
 Mid-Term Paper – Due date: October 13, 2014
Week 8
October 13, 2014
Chapter 7 – Course Lecture
Assignment due:
 Mid-Term Paper
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 7
Week 9
October 20, 2014
Chapter 8 – Course Lecture
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 8
Week 10
October 27, 2014
Chapter 9 – Course Lecture
Chapters 6, 7 and 8 Examination
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 9
Week 11
November 3, 2014
Chapter 10 – Course Lecture
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 10
Week 12
November 10, 2014
Chapter 11 – Course Lecture
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 11
Week 13
November 17, 2014
Chapter 12 – Course Lecture
Chapters 9, 10, and 11 Examination
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 12
Week 14
November 24, 2014
Thanksgiving Week
Chapter 13 – Course Lecture
New Assignments:
 Read Chapter 13
 Final Paper – Due date: December 8, 2014
Week 15
December 1, 2014
Chapter 14 & 15 – Course Lecture
Chapters 12 and 13 Examination
Week 16
December 8, 2014
Final Week
Chapters 14 and 15 Examination
Assignment due: Final Paper