This episode of CECH Chats features a special fireside chat with Robert Hirsch, chief of the Miami Township police department and a two-time alum of UC's School of Criminal Justice – he holds an undergraduate degree and master's degree from the school. But early on Hirsch never even thought of becoming a police officer, instead studying to become an aeronautical engineer until the events of September 11, 2001, spurred him to quit school and join the army. Upon honorable discharge from the military, he showed up to the police academy just a couple days later.

Hirsch was hired to the Miami Township Police Department in 2007, starting as a patrol officer and working up to field training officer, patrol supervisor, and operations commander. He was appointed as police chief in 2024

In this special episode of CECH Chats, Hirsch speaks with school director JC Barnes about his experience as a UC student. He also goes into detail about a very special study, executed in partnership with the School of Criminal Justice, aimed at reducing dangerous motorist speeds on a stretch of road next to a school for children with hearing impairments.

Tune in to learn more about this fascinating and impactful work.

CECH Chats welcomes Joe Johnson, assistant professor in the School of Information Technology and noted bat ecologist and conservationist. An Northeast native, Johnson first found his way to Ohio by way of Athens' Ohio University, where he worked as an assistant professor of ecology for six years. He joined the University of Cincinnati's School of Information Technology faculty in 2022, focusing on research that explores the intersection of technology and ecology.

A graduate of the University of Kentucky's Animal Sciences PhD program, where he trained as a mammal ecologist and conservationist, Johnson performs research that covers a lot of ground but remains connected to both conservation efforts and a better understanding of life history. His research topics have included bat populations affected by white nose syndrome, recovery of threatened species, bat population dynamics, and much more. In his current work, Johnson is seeking to create and employ IT solutions for wildlife conservation.

In this episode Johnson tells us how he first developed his interest in bats and how his appreciation of flying mammals has deepened over the years. He shares about some of the cool technological products and solutions he's employing in his conservation research about bats. He also discusses some of the work being done by the Ohio Bat Lab, a research team he leads focused on mammal ecology and conservation, and he gives us a preview of the upcoming fourth annual Ohio Bat Fest, a free, all-ages event to celebrate our bat neighbors here in southern Ohio.

CECH Chats welcomes Hanyun Li, Assistant Professor and School Counseling Program Track Coordinator in the School of Human Services.

Li first came to the U.S. from China to pursue her graduate degree in school counseling, driven by a desire to be the adult that she, personally, needed in her younger years and to be there for young learners and their families. After receiving her master's in school counseling from the University of Virginia, Li earned her doctorate in counseling from The George Washington University in D.C. Now in her second year as a faculty member at UC, Li's practice and research experiences and interests include school counseling, counseling children and adolescents, family counseling, counseling leadership, professional identity development, multicultural counseling, neurodivergence, play therapy and more.

In this episode, Li shares how she changed her career pathway from a plan to become a school counselor herself to training and research work in higher education. She discusses her past work outside academia as a therapist and how she hopes to one day provide this service again. Li also talks about discovering the cultural vibrancy of Cincinnati and how the city's artistic offerings help her maintain balance in a busy career. She also covers the importance of school counselor leadership identity development and much more.

This episode of "CECH Chats" features Tina Stanton-Chapman, a Professor of Early Childhood Education and Human Development at the University of Cincinnati and a Fulbright Specialist Scholar for the U.S. Department of Defense. She specializes in the development of peer relationships in children with disabilities, specifically preschoolers with specific language impairment, behavioral disorders and autism spectrum disorder.

Her current research centers on designing playgrounds that incorporate the Principles of Universal Design, where all individuals are able to participate in play regardless of age, gender, race/ethnicity, culture and ability. This interest can be traced all the way back to 1997, during her time as a teacher at Miami-Dade Public Schools, when she observed two of her students who, due to special needs, were unable to enjoy recess on the playground with the rest of the class. The moment was a catalyst for her research, and today she's designed four playgrounds that are accessible to not only children of all abilities, but also the adults who accompany them.

In this episode, Stanton-Chapman tells us about designing playgrounds that adhere to Universal Design. She talks about the challenges of aligning academic research with the business operations of playground manufacturers, bringing zip lines to American playgrounds, benefits of accessible equipment for grandparents and more.

Assistant Professor J.Z. Bennett of UC's School of Criminal Justice is a self-described "Temple Made student," having earned his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from Temple University in Philadelphia. He also completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Center for Urban Education at the University of Pittsburgh. Bennett joined the School of Criminal Justice in 2022, where he quickly made an impact with his research into, among other areas, juvenile life without parole, and his work with the Urban Youth Leadership Academy and The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program.

Bennett tells us about serving as an editor for the recently published Black Freedom Struggle in Urban Appalachia, a community-centered book featuring various perspectives on Black freedom work being done in Pittsburgh, the largest urban center in Appalachia. The book features a number of contributors — from artists to academics, high school student to organizers — and is organized around five themes central to the exploration of Appalachia as a place and the impact of carcerality on the region.

In this episode, Benett also talks with us about growing up in Philadelphia in a family full of law enforcement officers, as well as experiencing personal tragedy in a city that struggles with the effects of gun violence. He also shares about his experience graduating high school at 15, becoming a first-generation college student while still very much a minor and more.

CECH Chats welcomes Professor Dave Kelley of the School of Human Services. Kelley is a renowned Sport Administration professor and coordinator of the Online Master's Degree Program here at UC. He began his career as a teacher, coach and athletic administrator in Ohio's Vinton County Local Schools before forging a path in academia. Kelley has over two decades experience in higher education and has significantly impacted the sport administration field through his innovative teaching methods and extensive professional expertise.

Author of a 2012 book about sports fundraising, Kelley has a new work releasing soon titled Internship Playbook: Skills and Strategies for Sport Industry Success. The book aims to distill Kelley's extensive experience with sport administration internship work to share guidance for students looking to gain an advantage in pursuit of a rewarding career.

In this episode, Kelley talks with us about the role sports played in his early days, growing up in Pittsford, New York, as well as his journey from public school roles into academia. He reveals how he arrived at the idea for the Internship Playbook and shared one tip he considers essential for anyone completing an internship. He also tells the story of how he came up with the idea for the Cincinnati Public Schools All-Star Showcase, an annual basketball event that benefits Project Connect's mission of advocating for and helping CPS students experiencing homelessness.

On the debut episode of "CECH Chats," we hear from faculty members and students from the School of Criminal Justice about their work under a Department of Justice/Office of Violence Against Women grant awarded in 2024. The project, titled "Language Access Barriers to Justice Among Victims of Violence Against Women with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities," aims to collect data through interviews and focus groups around the experiences victims with intellectual and or developmental disabilities, aka IDD, face when reporting violent crimes.

While future episodes of "CECH Chats" will focus primarily on one-on-one or small group conversations, for this debut episode, we have something special: A wide-ranging presentation moderated by project lead, associate professor Brittany Hayes, featuring co-principal investigators Ráchael Powers, also an associate professor in the School of Criminal Justice, and associate professor Amanda Simmons from the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders in UC's College of Allied Health Sciences. We also heard from co-investigator Leigh Anne McKingsley from the ARC's National Center on Criminal Justice and Disability. The ARC is a national organization that promotes and protects the human rights of individuals with IDD.

Students at the undergraduate, master's and doctorate levels involved in various stages of the grant-funded work are also included in this conversation.

For more information about CECH, visit us online at cech.uc.edu, and be sure to check out the CECH Headlines page for news articles, video stories and more.