NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE COURSE SYLLABUS
COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Course title: INTRODUCTION TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Course prefix, number, and section number: CRIJ 1301 SEC 0381
Semester/Year of course: SPRING 2nd 8 weeks 2026
Semester start and end dates: March 16, 2026- May 08, 2026
Modality (Face to face/Synchronous or Asynchronous online/Hybrid): ASYNCHRONOUS ONLINE
Class meeting location, days, and times: ONLINE
Lab meeting location, days, and times: N/A
Semester credit hours: 3
Course description: This course provides a historical and philosophical overview of the American criminal justice system, including the nature, extent, and impact of crime; criminal law; and justice agencies and processes. 48 lecture hours.
Course prerequisites: None
Required course materials: Introduction to Criminal Justice 10th Edition With Connect (Required) McGraw Hill, author Robert Bohm
Name of instructor: EVELYN ANDERSON
Office location: ONLINE
E-mail address: EANDERSON@NCTC.EDU
OFFICE HOURS FOR STUDENTS (VIA WEBEX)
FRIDAYS 1:00 PM – 3: 00 PM
OR
BY APPOINTMENT: MONDAY- FRIDAY
SYLLABUS CHANGE DISCLAIMER
The faculty member reserves the right to make changes to this published syllabus if it is in the best interest of the educational development of this class. Any such changes will be announced as soon as possible in person and/or writing.
Final grade scale:
90-100 A
80-89 B
70-79 C
60-69 D
59 and Below F
SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
List of graded assignments:
5 Discussion Forums 15%
14 Chapter Quizzes 25%
14 Chapter Assignments 10%
1 QEP Aspire to be Hired assignment 15%
5 Learning Outcome Essays 15%
1 Mid-term Exam 10%
1 Final Exam 10%
Extra Credit 5%
WEEKLY BREAKDOWN OF ASSIGNMENTS:
WEEK 1: CHAPTERS 1 & 2
Ch 1: Crime and Justice in the United States
Ch 2: Crime and Its Consequences
Discussion Board #1 (Introduction)
Proctorio-Student Orientation
Chapter 1 Assignment
Chapter 2 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 1 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 2 Quiz
Learning Outcome (2) Essay #1 [ch2]
Schedule the Instructor Meeting for Week 4 (extra credit)
WEEK 2: CHAPTERS 3 & 4
Ch 3: Explaining Crime
Ch 4: The Rule of Law
Discussion Board #2 (Surveillance Cameras)
Chapter 3 Assignment
Chapter 4 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 3 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 4 Quiz
Learning Outcome(4) Essay #2 [ch 4]
WEEK 3: CHAPTERS 5 & 6
Ch 5: History and Structure of America Law Enforcement
Ch 6: Policing: Roles, Styles, and Functions
Discussion Board #3 (Robert Peel's Principal of Policing Today)
Chapter 5 Assignment
Chapter 6 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 5 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 6 Quiz
Learning Outcome(3) Essay #3 [ch2]
WEEK 4: CHAPTERS 7 & 8
Ch 7: Policing America: Issues and Ethics
Ch 8: The Administration of Justice
Discussion Board #4 (Officer's Use of Deadly Force on a Traffic Stop)
Chapter 7 Assignment
Chapter 8 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 7 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 8 Quiz
Mid-Term Exam
EXTRA CREDIT: WEBEX MEETING WITH PROFESSOR
WEEK 5: CHAPTERS 9 & 10
Ch 9: Sentencing, Appeals and the Death Penalty
Ch 10: Institutional Corrections
Chapter 9 Assignment
Chapter 10 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 9 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 10 Quiz
Learning Outcome (1) Essay #4
QEP Aspire to be Hired: Professional Communication
WEEK 6: CHAPTERS 11 & 12
Ch 11: Prison Life, Inmate Rights, Release and Recidivism
Ch 12: Community Corrections
Chapter 11 Assignment
Chapter 12 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 10 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 11 Quiz
WEEK 7: CHAPTERS 13 &14
Ch 13: Juvenile Justice
Ch 14: The Future of Criminal Justice in the United States
Discussion Board #5 (Juvenile Justice)
Chapter 13 Assignment
Chapter 14 Assignment
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 13 Quiz
Proctoring Enabled: Chapter 14 Quiz
Learning Outcome Essay #5 [ch 5, 8, 10 & 14]
WEEK 8: FINAL EXAM
Final Exam
LATE WORK POLICY:
No late assignments will be accepted. You must read your syllabus to ensure you are submitting your assignments on time.
SEE CANVAS FOR THE COMPLETE COURSE CALENDAR, OUTLINE, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF GRADED WORK, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIAL.
COURSE POLICIES
Academic Integrity Policy: Cheating or collusion is prohibited. There are no group assignments in this course. Each student is responsible for their own assignment. If you make the decision to cheat and you are caught cheating, you may or could be dropped from the course and receive an F. Criminal Justice practitioners are held to a higher standard.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
Attendance is also taken by your participation in the discussion forums and completing assignments. If a student is absent for 2 consecutive weeks they may be dropped off for non-attendance. This means that if a student does not complete an assignment within those 2 consecutive weeks, they may be dropped by the instructor from the course for non-attendance. I do record attendance weekly through Qwickly.
WITHDRAWAL POLICY:
A student may withdraw from a course on or after the official date of record. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate and complete a Withdrawal Request Form.
Last day to withdraw from the course with a “W” is: APRIL 20, 2026
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Describe the history and philosophy of the American criminal justice system.
- Explain the nature and extent of crime in America.
- Analyze the impact and consequences of crime.
- Evaluate the development, concepts, and functions of law in the criminal justice system.
- Describe the structure of contemporary federal, state, and local justice agencies and processes.
CORE OBJECTIONS:
Critical Thinking
Professional Communication
Personal Responsibility
Social Responsibility
COLLEGE POLICIES
STUDENT HANDBOOK
Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the Student Handbook.
ADA STATEMENT
NCTC will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the Office for Students with Disabilities to arrange appropriate accommodations. See the OSD Syllabus Addendum.
STUDENT SERVICES
NCTC provides a multitude of services and resources to support students. See the Student Services Syllabus Addendum for a listing of those departments and links to their sites.
AI STATEMENT
Absent a clear statement from a course instructor, use of or consultation with generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other similar technologies shall be treated analogously to assistance from another person, agency, or entity. In particular, using generative AI tools to substantially complete an assignment or exam is not permitted. Students should acknowledge the use of generative AI (other than incidental use) and default to disclosing such assistance when in doubt.
When students use generative AI to replace the rigorous demands of personal engagement with their coursework, it runs counter to the educational mission of the college and undermines the heart of education itself. Artificial Intelligence, large language models, and other such technologies hold promise for deploying knowledge in service to others and accelerating the discovery of new knowledge. However, such technology poses new challenges to pedagogy and to integrity. Within the context of the teaching mission of the college and consistent with the Student Code of Conduct, the authority to define the appropriate use, study, and deployment of these technologies’ rests with the faculty.
Individual course instructors, in coordination with their divisions, set policies regulating the use of generative AI tools in their courses, including allowing or disallowing some or all uses of such tools. Course instructors will set such policies in their course syllabi and clearly communicate such policies to students. Students who are unsure of policies regarding generative AI tools are encouraged to ask their instructors for clarification.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE POLICY:
Prohibited
This course assumes that all work submitted by students will be generated by the students themselves, working individually or in groups. Students should not have another person/entity do the writing of any substantive portion of an assignment for them, which includes hiring a person or a company to write assignments and using artificial intelligence tools.
QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, or COMPLAINTS
The student should contact the instructor to deal with any questions, concerns, or complaints specific to the class. If the student and faculty are not able to resolve the issue, the student may contact the chair or coordinator of the division. If the student remains unsatisfied, the student may proceed to contact the instructional dean.
Name of Chair/Coordinator: Teresa Laman
Office location: Corinth Suite 170 Office Number 172
Telephone number: 940-498-6263
E-mail address: tlaman@nctc.edu
Name of Instructional Dean: Debbie Huffman
Office location: Gainesville CTE 2100 Building office 2106
Telephone number: 940-662-3357