Assabet forensics course brings `CSI' to life.

Byline: Susan Shalhoub

Hot acronyms in today's teenage culture are broader in scope than just texting favorites such as OMG, LOL and IRL. At Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School in Marlboro, DNA, FACES, and CSI are also buzzwords, especially in instructor Alexia Forhan's new forensics course.

"I'm hoping not to teach kids how to commit the perfect crime," she said, laughing. Lessons in critical thinking, observation, and deductive reasoning have not only attracted students to the popular elective, but have also won the attention of Best Buy, which awarded Mrs. Forhan a $5,000 grant this past March.

Mrs. Forhan, a Shrewsbury resident, has been an educator for 15 years, with 10 years at the high school level. She was formerly a dietician, and she discovered she liked working with young adults. "I enjoyed the excitement of the molding I could do with them and seeing how they feed off each other's knowledge," she said. "It reminded me of me when I was learning."

Janine L. Fernette, a senior from Maynard, took the course in the first half of the year. "We do a lot of stuff you wouldn't think we do," she said, "like putting a strand of our own DNA in fluid in a necklace."

The beauty of the class, said Mrs. Forhan, is that investigating a crime scene gives relevance to science and makes students love science.

Coursework includes analyzing hair, fiber, and soil evidence; using chemicals to test blood; and lifting latent, or invisible fingerprints, from porous surfaces. Mrs. Forhan calls the excitement for the course - a marriage of life sciences, physics, and chemistry - "phenomenal." Eighty seniors have gone through the half-year course in its first year.

The Best Buy grant allowed Mrs. Forhan to buy new technology for the classroom, including laptops, cameras and the "CSI" interactive Wii game. Facial Composite Software, or FACES, also used in the Assabet classroom, is used in actual crime labs. Students can create virtual police lineups, superimposing facial features and disguises.

On April 27, Mrs. Forhan received a $1,500 grant for forensics supplemental materials from the American Chemical Society in Colorado.

In the class, seniors are exposed to forensic science as an actual career path. A chemist at the Massachusetts State Police crime lab visited students last month. In one project, students played the roles of professionals involved in a forensic autopsy - a diener, or morgue assistant, forensic pathologist, and measurer - took out parts of a pig, and looked for abnormalities. The class then wrote autopsy reports.

"It made me feel like I was almost part of the `CSI' crew on TV," senior Joshua Belanger, of Clinton, said of lab work and solving cases.

Mrs. Forhan said she knows of six seniors planning to go into forensic careers, such as a student going to Anna Maria College for criminal justice and a student with sights set on joining the state police.

Next year's class, Mrs. Forhan said, will include more guest speakers. "It keeps (students') interest piqued and shows them professions," she said. More work on authentic cases, she said, is also planned to show the relevance of forensics in our world.

Mrs. Forhan has been nominated by Ann Rudich, a teacher at Holy Name High School in Worcester, for a Presidential Award in Excellence in Science and Teaching. The two teachers often collaborate on lab projects. As part of her application, Mrs. Forhan submitted class projects on video. "A lot went into this (application)," she said. The award includes a $10,000 grant from the National Science Foundation and a citation signed by President Barack Obama. Winners will be selected next year.

"Forensic Science is the coolest class I have ever picked as an elective," said senior Madeline Hernandez, of Marlboro. "My most favorite things we did were an autopsy and blood analysis."

ART: PHOTOS

PHOTOG: SUBMITTED PHOTO

CUTLINE: (1) Hair, soil and fiber analysis is being carried out by Daisy Barrera. left, and Chloe Endara, both of Marlboro. (2) Teacher Alexia Forhan leads the forensics class at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High. (3) At right, Chloe Endara of Marlboro performs chromatography ink analysis. (4) Below, Marlboro residents Felype Alves, left, and Jeremy Viera conduct a forensic autopsy. (5) Chromatography ink analysis performed by Joseph Artz.