- Faculty; On Campus and Online
Rafael Rojas Jr. brings book smarts and street smarts to SNHU’s justice studies program.
An assistant professor who joined the faculty in 2008, Rojas cut his teeth in criminal justice working as an investigator for the Brooklyn (N.Y.) District Attorney’s Office in the 1970s. He later worked for the New York State Department of Correctional Services before spending more than 20 years with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department.
Rojas draws on his experience to educate students on topics ranging from policing and corrections to terrorism and international criminal justice. While he was working in Brooklyn in 1977, for example, police apprehended “Son of Sam” serial killer David Berkowitz, thanks in part to a parking ticket a Brooklyn officer wrote Berkowitz the night of his last murders. Rojas uses the anecdote to illustrate how following routine procedures can yield results.
“Having 30 years of practical experience enables someone to come into the classroom and back up the theoretical perspective,” he says. “I refer to examples from my experience to help students put two and two together. They get a clear picture of how the criminal justice system really works.”
The justice studies program offers associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees, along with graduate certificates. The curriculum prepares students for careers in all areas of the justice system, including law, the courts, federal agencies, terrorism prevention and victim advocacy, Rojas says.
“There’s a job out there for everyone who goes through justice studies,” he says.
