March 12, 2009- How I got to where I am

RMy desire has always been to pursue a career in criminal justice; a field that has a direct impact on society in which I live. This is decisively the direction I am headed. In high school I was nominated by one of my teachers to attend the Youth Leadership Forum for Defense, Intelligence and Diplomacy in Washington, D.C. for a week. During the forum, I was actively involved with government officials of the United States from various organizations and departments. One of their exercises divided the 300 select students into smaller strategic groups with an elected presidential cabinet. As the nominated Secretary of Defense, I assertively assisted to develop a realistic course of action for a simulated crisis affecting the security of our homeland. This incredible experience essentially ignited my passion for Criminal Justice. 

By the second semester of my freshmen year of college, I decided to dual major adding Sociology. While I undoubtedly wanted to be a Criminal Justice Studies major, I knew it was essential that I broaden my education to enhance both my knowledge and my opportunities. I have excelled academically and professionally with my undergraduate studies, and participated in many extracurricular activities and held various leadership positions.  Each of the courses I have taken expanded my scope of the criminal justice system and heightened my awareness of social justice issues: victimology, criminology, juvenile justice, Leadership and Building Communities, and urban sociology and politics. I believe these courses correlate with my career path of becoming a special agent for the federal government.

Likewise I knew it was necessary to extend my education beyond the classroom. My freshmen year I applied and became a member of the Dayton Civic Scholars (DCS). The Dayton Civic Scholars’ program is designed for students interested in urban affairs and social justice and pursuing careers in public service. The purpose of the Dayton Civic Scholars is to shape a social science excellence identity within the social science disciplines by creating an intentional pathway from the classroom to community leadership and public service. DCS enabled me to have a significant impact on the Dayton community as early as my junior year by preparing me and allowing for meaningful civic leadership roles.

During my quest, I was inspired to explore possibilities in the investigative field. I had the good fortune to participate in several conferences, namely, the American Society of Criminology Conference and The Academy of Criminal Justice Studies and National League of Cities. At these conferences I listened to numerous presentations of highly respected officials of public administration, government, politics, criminology, criminal justice and sociology.

I fully participated in three internships: the clerk for two District Courts in Chester County Pennsylvania, an investigative assistant for the Department of State Diplomatic Security at the Resident Office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the NCIS Special Agent Representative at Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) in Washington, D.C.

My most recent work experience was with NCIS, which offered an intense hands-on, non-paying internship program that was designed to provide education-related work assignments for students. My internship was with the Department of Defense Inspector General’s (DODIG) Project Management Office (PMO) for NCIS. The particular project that I worked on is the Department of the Navy Criminal Justice System (DONCJIS).  DONCJIS is an evolutionary step in the modernization of the Consolidated Law Enforcement Operations Center (CLEOC) and will serve as the Navy's "cradle to grave" law enforcement information system by incorporating data on criminal investigations and their associated legal proceedings and correctional records. Overall DONCJIS will enhance the existing systems for U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Law Enforcement, JAG, and Corrections Users by providing full data processing and case tracking capabilities from incident to correction. My responsibilities as the NCIS Special Agent Representative to the DODIG and PMO included working on both unclassified and classified DONCJIS.  I recorded and managed DONCJIS and DONCJIS Classified manuals, minutes, calendars, and briefs. I assisted with organizing and developing DONCJIS CI offsite; interacted and worked with NCIS and military personal and government contractors, such as InterImage and Savvee Consulting Inc. When I was first acknowledged for the NCIS internship, I requested a deferment to the following semester because I accepted an earlier offer from the Department of State Diplomatic Security.  Before starting, the NCIS recruitment office waived my assignment selections designating me as the candidate for the newly created elite position from the term before. At the end of which, the director requested two candidates as my replacement, adding that I exceeded the expectations set forth by the previous recruit.

The internship and being an active participant on the PMO team made me realize I want to pursue a permanent position with the agency. In order to achieve this goal, I need to continue my formal education.

My last internship introduced me to Washington, DC and the surrounding area; I love the city; I feel at home there. It was then that I decided to investigate graduate schools in DC. After I receive my Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice Studies and Sociology my intention is to continue my education with graduate school.  I applied and was admitted into American University’s, School of Public Affairs, Master in Justice, Law and Society. As I reflect on all my undergrad experiences, I believe this course of study will further advance my goal to work for the Federal Government in either the public or private sector.

Like the University of Dayton, I was impressed with American University the academic standard of excellence and commitment to their students. I am excited to start my Master in Science, Justice, Law and Society program because this course of study compliments my bachelor degrees by reinforcing and developing what I have already learned as well as introducing new perspectives and insight and a more comprehensive education. 

January 20, 2008- Internships ...

Recently, I have been accepted into two internship programs. One, with the Department of State, with Diplomatic Security in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Naval Criminal Investigative Services (NCIS) in Washington, D.C. I applied in November and January. Currently I am going through the background checks and interviewing process. I am looking forward to this competitive process because it is preparing and helping me decided what field (career) of criminal justice I want to pursue.

I was able to achieve these wonderful opportunities with the help of Mr. Apolito our Criminal Justice Department Internship Coordinator as well as a fellow Criminal Justice Studies student, David Blake, who applied for these internships last year, and had all positive feedback about his experiences. The application process is extensive but well worth the effort, because I’m becoming more knowledgeable about government agencies and how the process works, which will benefit me when I graduate and I’m applying for jobs.  

January 20, 2008- John E. Reid Seminar ...

I and another Criminal Justice Studies student, Brian Eisenhardt attended Reid’s Interviewing and Interrogation Seminar in Columbus, Ohio. More than 500,000 professionals in the law enforcement and security fields have attended the interview and interrogation training programs. Seminar topics included Interview and Interrogation Preparation, Distinction between an Interview and Interrogation, Proper Room Environment, and Factors Affecting a Subject’s Behavior. In just three days I learned a vast amount of information, with the completion of the seminar both myself and brain are now certified in interrogating and interviewing. Additionally, after returning from the seminar with a greater knowledge of the topic, I and Brian are going to begin writing a grant proposal, which will enable other students who aspire for higher education and self improvement to be able to participate in like seminars without the financial strain. I am really looking forward to working on this project.  

November 26, 2007 - Attending the National League of Cities Conference…

The Congress of Cities & Exposition is one of two annual National League of Cities (NLC) conferences. Each year, the Congress of Cities is hosted by a different NLC-member city and routinely draws thousands of local elected officials from throughout the country to its general sessions featuring national experts, workshops, leadership training seminars, and networking opportunities. The benefit of have that national league of cities conference in New Orleans was strategically planned. Over 5,000 officials from all over the US attend this conference which means they are putting money back into New Orleans economy. Additionally it was a prime location to bring officials to discuss key issues such as economy, poverty, housing, crime and other prominent issues that drastically effect cities large or small. Overall, this conference was an amazing opportunity and the worships and speakers that I was able to listen to really pertains to my major and gave me great insight into what I might pursue in the future.                 

One of the speakers was New York City’s Mayor, Michael R. Bloomberg. He discussed leadership and accountability. He understands the growing challenges this country and our local communities are facing. His willingness to embrace bold and innovative solutions to issues like public safety, sustainability, poverty and education reform reflects the true leadership that local government officials exhibit every day. He touched a little on the topic of security, ethnicity and culture and how one of the most tangible threats to public culture comes from the politics of everyday fear, and how cities officials need to be conscious of this.                                                                                          

Another speaker was Nagin, Mayor of New Orleans, who has had to rebuild his community from the ground up after Hurricane Katrina. He maintained his determination to put the city back together, and has united his citizens in this effort.  Nagin called for help from federal government to step up and provide the necessary funding to put the city back on the path of thriving. With such a large scale disaster, virtually Nagin has had to create a city. New Orleans is a port city, its location on the Mississippi and gulf is vital to the economy and redevelopment. Currently under Nagin’s leadership the economy is coming back, tourism is up and the city is slowly returning to some sense of normalcy but there is still a great deal more work to be done.                                                                 

Overall, this was a vary informative conference that really opened my eyes to the what is going on in various cities throughout the US as well as helped me to understand and connect issues that I’m currently learning about in my classes.

September 10, 2007- Current class schedule

I didn’t decide until the end of my freshmen year that I wanted to be a double major. I decided sociology was going to be my other field of study. Some of the Criminal Justice Studies and Sociology courses do overlap which is nice because I am able to graduate in 4 years with a duel major.

This year my curriculum is focused on urban communities. I’m taking courses such as urban sociology, urban politics and leadership in building communities. All of which are intertwined by simultaneously provides fascinating diverse point of views on the topic.

I really enjoy my leadership in building communities class because the seminar class actually is given a specific neighborhood/community to help in their development by using consensus organizing. Our neighborhood we are focusing on is Caroillion.  What’s even better is that I’m learning about the city of Dayton history, outside of campus.

September 4, 2007 - Who Am I?

My name is Monica DiGiandomenico. Yes, I know it is a really long last name that seems to be impossible to say but in actuality looks more intimidating then it really is. I’m from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; well actually a suburb close to Philadelphia called West Chester.

I am the youngest of three siblings. I’m currently a junior at the University of Dayton, double majoring in Criminal Justice and Sociology. I plan on going to graduate school for my master’s degree. I’m interested in Diplomatic Security currently. I enjoy watching and playing sports such as basketball, soccer, football, volleyball and hockey. I enjoy all kinds of music but I’m a true country fan at heart.

Other activities that I am involved in on campus are: Chi Omega Fraternity (social), Dayton Civic Scholars (community builder), Omega Phi Delta (professional Criminal Justice Fraternity), Alpha Phi Sigma (National Criminal Justice Honors Society), National Society of Collegiate Scholars and the Criminal Justice Studies Research Assistant.

August 29, 2007- How and why I came to UD…

My search for a college began mid year of my junior year in high school. My parents and I visited around 10 different schools from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and D.C.

Though I visited numerous colleges none really struck me as the place I wanted to spend four years of my life. I was hoping that I would get that feeling that everyone talks about when they find “their college,” that one they just knew was the place for them. I totally didn’t believe there was such a “feeling” until my brother suggested I visit him in Ohio and look at colleges there.

The open-minded person that I am, I decided to take my brother’s advice and venture the nine hour car ride to Dayton, Ohio. I looked at several schools in the Cincinnati, Columbus and lastly the Dayton area. As I pulled up the University of Dayton Campus, the first thing that impressed me was its appearance. As I talked to the faculty and students I realized there was a strong sense of community, a rigorous academic reputation in a semi-urban setting. All of these qualities were what I was looking for in college.  I wanted a school where I wasn’t just a number but also not so small that I knew everyone in my class. University of Dayton was the place for me.