Nikki Cuadros - Forensics Lab

Hello! My name is Nikki Cuadros. I am a senior at Hoover High School and I am currently attending my second year at the Center for Advanced Research and Technology, also known as CART. During my junior year of high school, I was in the Psychology and Neuroscience Lab. I enjoyed my experience last year so much because of all the knowledge I gained and hands-on work I was able to do, that I knew I had to enroll again for this school year! I am currently part of the  Forensics Lab. So far, we have dove into the world of forensics in many ways and have been to multiple (fake) crime scenes! 

Not many high school students can say they've investigated a crime scene or interviewed an FBI Special Agent. At CART, I’ve been able to do just that—and so much more. This week at CART, my lab has been working on Project 1. In this project, we were put into groups and assigned a profession to do research on. We first did some group bonding to ensure our groups could work together efficiently. We then got introduced to the project and began our initial research. We are currently writing individual essays, then we will be working on a powerpoint as a group to present to the class. My group got the opportunity to do research on the career of FBI Special Agents. The best part of this project is that each group gets to interview professionals in the field! Whether it was over the phone or in person, we have had contact with K9 handlers, arson investigators, crime scene investigators, and so many more cool and amazing experts! My lab teachers have done an amazing job at being there for us and helping to coordinate with our special guests.

CART is genuinely such a great opportunity for students who want to learn. This year in my lab, I have gotten access to more things and labs than I would be able to receive at my home school. The teachers are absolutely amazing and genuinely enjoy what they are teaching. Any student knows that this simple fact helps the classroom environment so much. Each lab is also amazing at tying in every subject to the lab’s main focus. For example, last year in the psychology lab, as we were working on learning about the brain, we were also reading a book called “Brain on Fire” for English, which was about a girl telling her story of her mysterious brain disease.  

This school year I have especially been reminded of why CART is such a transformative place. The amount of learning I have been able to do in such a short amount of time is truly a blessing. I have been able to gain so much information about the forensics world, which is a field I am highly interested in exploring at college. And again, I truly recommend CART to any upcoming juniors or seniors as it will truly help their academic journey. Personally, I don't really enjoy school, but CART has really helped me look forward to class every morning. I truly believe that this can be the outcome for many!