UCO’s Interactive Crime Scene House 

Forensic Science Institute (FSI) are called to a crime scene, it won’t be their first. Yes, their experience may be with manufactured bullet holes and bloodstains, but the knowledge is very real thanks to the interactive crime scene house now in use on Edmond’s campus. 

The 1,600 square foot space inside the FSI building includes a fully furnished setting complete with a kitchen, living room, bedroom, full bathroom, laundry, and outdoor area that offers students a realistic and immersive environment to study forensic science. 

“Instructor Keisha Jones and I spent a lot of time thinking about how this could best serve our students,” said instructor Meagan Raddatz, who is also the former crime laboratory director and technical investigator. “We applied our experience in the field to identify the areas we would love to see students more prepared in as they enter the field. Giving them a more prepared space is incredibly valuable.” 

This supports UCO’s goal of transformative learning, offering hands-on training that reinforces and surpasses discipline knowledge. “We can set up any type of scene, using any type of forensic evidence,” Meagan explained. “The students are able to make a plan, work through the scene, and see what errors they made or what they missed. Then, they can evaluate and edit their plan and learn how to improve in the future.” 

Meagan says the facility gives students a more realistic idea of what processing a crime scene truly requires. “They really have the chance to learn the scale of this undertaking.” 

The space also equips the students with organizational and managerial concepts as they learn to handle the documentation and preservation of evidence. “Previously, we only had outdoor spaces available, and that is a very different process than going into a fully furnished space that will often contain a lot more items and belongings that you have to go through.” 

In one program phase, students are challenged to create a crime scene for other students. Then, they monitor their work and provide live feedback via cameras set up within the interactive crime scene house. 

In addition to serving FSI students, the facility is a resource for law enforcement agencies. “We’re a metropolitan university so partnership with the agencies who are going to hire our students is really important,” Meagan said. “It can be a great training opportunity for agencies to utilize. Plus, we get to learn what’s going on in the field and bring it back to the classroom.” 

As always, UCO’s goal is to provide students with an education that will translate to practical skills and workforce readiness. “A lot of crime scene positions for example ask applicants to process a mock crime scene in the hiring process,” Meagan said. “This is just one more way we can prepare our students for success outside of the classroom.” 

To learn more, go to uco.edu/fsi.