Texas Department of Public Safety

In 2020, the Texas legislature awarded the Institute for Forensic Research Training and Innovation a two million dollar grant to create and deploy an online training program and certification for their Introduction to Forensic Science course. A team of four senior instructional designers was chosen to produce this massive project of over 60 modules, with a 6-month delivery deadline.  

Needs Assessment

Participants in the course consisted of academy graduates and Texas Peace Officers who sought the additional training required to process evidence collected at crime scenes. Texas state law has a rigorous set of guidelines that must be adhered to in order for evidence to remain valid. The IFRTI, a leading organization in the forensic science discipline, was required to present key terms, case studies, and case law history as a foundation for the participants before they could commence with scientific training. 

The scope of the project was quite large; over 60 individual modules ran the gamut of forensic science topics. As part of the four-person instructional design team, I was tasked with making interactive, web-based modules in Articulate that were embedded within the Blackboard Learning Management System. My primary challenge as a designer was to make dry material as engaging and interactive as possible. 

Module Demo

As part of the ID team, I worked with subject matter experts to convert simple black & white PowerPoint presentations to interactive, engaging online courses. Many of these PowerPoint presentations exceeded 40+ text-heavy slides. We were instructed that each slide must be transcribed word-for-word, and we were required to utilize the voiceovers embedded within the slides. These requirements often presented several challenges, including audio cleanup, custom graphics, and custom animations.

Upon delivery of the final product, the Texas Department of Safety was ecstatic with our design and contracted us to develop additional, optional training for their department.