Meet K.S., Training Coordinator and Senior Forensic Scientist

Education: MS in Pharmaceutical Sciences with a concentration in Forensic Science – University of Florida
BS in Molecular Biology and Minor in French – Brigham Young University

Explain your role and what a typical day looks like for you.

I am the Training Coordinator and a Senior Forensic Scientist. What my typical day looks like may change, depending on which role I am needed for that day.
As a Training Coordinator, I focus on mentoring and supporting my coworkers. I want them to feel comfortable asking questions so that their confidence in their job can grow, with their understanding of forensics. I lead training in both group and individual settings, making sure each trainee can understand, perform, and explain the processes that they’re learning. I also oversee trainers to make sure that they are adequately teaching and explaining the processes. I work with the Technical Leader and Quality Manager to ensure that everyone, not just trainees, is competent in the processes that they perform and maintains a high quality of work.
As a Senior Forensic Scientist, I work with evidence administration, serology testing, DNA extraction, and analysis. I describe evidence and determine the most appropriate testing approach based on the case. After completing the testing, I analyze the data and try to separate out any individuals from the profile and make any comparisons to known profiles. This gives a statistic which I use to determine the weight of the evidence.

What motivated you to choose a career in forensics, and what keeps you motivated now?

I grew up watching and loving crime shows – Bones was a particular favorite – but it wasn’t until high school that I realized that forensics was an actual career and not just something on television. One of my high school science classes actually had a crime scene investigation unit, and that’s what made it click that it’s a real career that I could actually have!
What keeps me motivated now is that I am deeply passionate about truth and justice, including getting guilty individuals off the streets as well as justice for victims of crimes. We can only hope to have justice when the truth is available, which is where my job comes in. Forensic scientists help provide facts, without which there can be no justice.

What has been your most memorable case you’ve worked on?

There have been quite a few memorable cases that I’ve worked on, which helps to keep the work feeling new and engaging. One that really stands out was an unidentified human remains case. The police department that sent us the evidence didn’t have much left of the body, but they did have a human scalp and needed us to generate a profile from it.
It was a very old case with a lot of decomposition, so much so that I had to rinse off the decomposition to get to the skin. I was washing the hair from a severed scalp. The washing worked and we were able to get a pretty good profile for the police department!

What advice would you give to someone considering a career in forensics?

I would advise someone considering a career in forensics to figure out which section of forensics they’re interested in. There are different specialties in forensics, like DNA, latent prints, cybercrime, and more. It’s helpful to figure that out early in your education, since each specialty has different coursework requirements. Tailoring your classwork to match your desired field can help you to actually get into your career faster and more efficiently.

What do you enjoy outside of work?

One of my favorite hobbies outside of work is baking. I grew up making desserts with my mom, and even now, we still love talking about what we’re baking, even though we live across the country from one another.
I also love playing video games and Dungeons & Dragons! Single player action games tend to be what I like best, but I like horror games as well. Control and Until Dawn are two of my all-time favorites. I’ve been playing D&D with the same group for about nine years, and we’ve played many different campaigns together. I’ve played a lot spellcasters, but currently I’m playing a monk in a low-magic space world (of my husband’s creation) and am having a blast! 

In this Forensics Spotlight series, get an intimate look at what we do here and what keeps us engaged in this fascinating field. Because our employees deal regularly with confidential crime-solving work, we are identifying them only by their initials. 

Sorenson Forensics is a leading provider of advanced forensic casework and DNA testing services to federal, state and local crime laboratories. We also assist officers of the court in individual criminal cases and offer comprehensive forensic DNA services to private-industry clients.  Contact us to see what we can do for you, and follow us on Facebook , LinkedIn and Twitter.