Tom Slutich, director of the forensic science master’s program at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and a professor of chemistry, said the program is offered at the Southwestern Illinois Justice and Workforce Development Campus in Belleville and is pursuing accreditation.

The program matters to law enforcement and aspiring forensic scientists because, Slutich said, it aligns with statewide efforts to address a backlog of DNA evidence announced in recent years by Governor J.B. Pritzker. “We currently offer a program that is working towards feedback accreditation,” Slutich said.

Slutich described the program’s local partnerships and training connections. “Number 1, we have close interaction with the Illinois State Police,” he said, and he added the program works with the Southwestern Illinois College Police Academy and the law program at Southern Illinois University’s Carbondale campus. He said those relationships create “essentially a one-stop shop for all the different areas with respect to law enforcement.”

Slutich also identified his credentials while describing the program: he said he has 25 years of experience in chemistry and 13 years of experience in forensics in the St. Louis metropolitan area. He said the program’s location and partnerships are advantages for students and for regional law enforcement agencies addressing forensic workloads.

No formal votes or actions were recorded in the transcript excerpt regarding the program; Slutich’s remarks were informational and focused on accreditation progress and collaborative training links.

Next steps described in the remarks were limited to continuing the accreditation process and maintaining partnerships that support training and DNA-backlog efforts.