Maria is a Criminology and Psychology major who first became interested in Criminology from watching crime shows.  As she notes, however, “one of the first things you learn in Criminology classes is that crime shows are very unrealistic!”  Maria is grateful that her coursework opened her eyes to disparities in the criminal justice system and mitigating factors to consider in understanding the experiences of the incarcerated.  

After graduation, Maria hopes to attend grad school in school psychology, and then to work for a school in the Buffalo area.  As a school psychologist, she hopes to provide professional support to children and adolescents to help them flourish, academically and otherwise.  This goal is related to Criminology, since education is a key  deterrent to committing crimes.