My BiographyPatricia
A. Robinson serves as Executive Dean of the Criminal Justice Division, which is
comprised of three Centers. The Criminal Justice Center for Professional
Education which offers both AAS degree and Technical Diploma Programs along
with 15 certificates and many specialized training courses. The Criminal
Justice Center for Child Protection provides federally funded training and
technical assistance to law enforcement and communities nationwide for the
AMBER Alert system, child protection, and investigation of internet crimes
against children. The Criminal Justice Center for Innovation works with
communities, particularly tribal groups, to develop comprehensive and innovative
programs to address matters of public safety.
After earning her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr.
Robinson joined the faculty of the University’s
College of Engineering, teaching technical communication courses. She
was the first Director of the University’s Technical Communication Certificate
program. She is author of three books and several articles, and is a
nationally-known product safety consultant specializing in instructions and
warnings.
In 1991, Dr. Robinson traded her red pen for a badge and joined the
Madison Police Department, working as a patrol officer and later as a full-time
training officer, teaching a variety of subjects ranging from firearms to
report writing. She retired from the Police Department in 2000 and joined the
Training and Standards Bureau of the Wisconsin Department of Justice, where she
served as Law Enforcement Education Director and Deputy Bureau Director, and
was the principal architect of the law enforcement basic training curriculum
now used throughout the state.
In 2003 she left the Training and Standards Bureau and relocated to
southern Arizona, where she ran a successful consulting business, specializing
in scenario-based training for law enforcement and product safety consulting
for industry. A long-time volunteer firefighter and EMT, in 2006 she accepted a
full-time paid position as Captain for the Sonoita-Elgin (Arizona) Fire
Department, in charge of EMS services. She was lured back to the Midwest by the
opportunity to coordinate the development of a Public Safety Training Center
and a Health Simulation Center at Fox Valley Technical College.