MSU students land unique internship with homeland security investigations

By Brittanie Chludzinski
MSU Today

Two Michigan State University undergraduates will support active criminal investigations this semester as interns in the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations field office in Detroit.

Gina Kramer, a criminal justice senior, and Madeline MacLean, a junior studying criminal justice and Arabic, will work with special agents, task-force officers and intelligence research specialists at the HSI Special Agent in Charge Detroit Intelligence Group, the office, with more than 170 staff members, is one of 26 HSI offices in the United States that aim to identify, disrupt and dismantle terrorist and transnational organized crime groups.

“Through this unique partnership between HSI and the MSU School of Criminal Justice, we are building our next cadre of skilled leaders who will be armed with the mindset and the aptitude to confront 21st century threats against the homeland and beyond,” said Steve Francis, HSI Detroit’s acting special agent in charge.

While MSU students have interned with HSI Detroit in the past, this is the first year interns will focus exclusively on intelligence operations and gain real-world experience in field intelligence analysis.

“Given the growth in technology and information, it is critical that law enforcement expand its analytical capacity in order to address the challenges our society faces,” said Mary Finn, director and professor of MSU’s School of Criminal Justice.

As the school offers a master’s degree in law enforcement intelligence and analysis, Finn said it’s a natural development that undergraduate majors are interested in criminal intelligence as well.

“I’m thrilled that I have been selected for this new program,” MacLean said. “I’m looking forward to expanding my horizons and gaining new experiences with the agency, and I hope that I can help this program be successful.”

“I’m most looking forward to the collaboration with other analysts at HSI and working with my co-intern, Madeline,” Kramer said. “I think it’s going to be a really great experience, not just for Madeline and I, but for the agency as well.”