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As a teenager, Criminal Justice Technology student Raevyn Mitchell, 25, took a forensics class and was instantly hooked. The class introduced her to the process of collecting, analyzing, and understanding evidence found at accident scenes. It is a process that excites her to this day.

Mitchell was recently honored with her program’s Academic Achievement Award for excelling in her studies. “The things I’m most interested in are fingerprinting, blood splatter analysis, and ballistics,” she said. “Looking at bullets at a crime scene to determine what gun it came from.”

A hands-on science buff, Mitchell naturally gravitated toward the criminal justice field. Then, at 20, her life took a turn. Her grandmother, who had raised her from age 10, was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Melbourne, Florida, where they lived. Afterwards, Mitchell moved in with a friend in Virginia. Her grief over her grandmother’s death was exacerbated by frustration over the way the accident was handled by authorities. The driver, who had turned himself in, had not been prosecuted the way Mitchell felt he should.

“He didn’t get the amount of time I believe he should have,” Mitchell said, adding. “We didn’t know if he was drunk; they weren’t able to get his blood alcohol levels.”

Mitchell’s call to study criminal justice increased. Having moved to North Carolina to be closer to family, she found 99������Ƶ’s program. It was cost-effective and offered the chance to explore unanswered questions.

“I wanted to understand the different kinds of sentences,” she said. “My goal was to understand how justice works. How people are sentenced and how they determine how some people get more severe charges for the same crime."

Once on campus, Mitchell thrived in her classes, which were primarily online. She thrived even more on campus under department chair Sarah Benson’s leadership, which she said is inspiring, especially in a male-dominated field.

“I admire her kindness and her strong work,” Mitchell said. “She was the first female deputy at the Asheville police department, and she’s constantly working.”

“Raveyn’s leadership qualities set her apart from her peers,” Benson said when she nominated Mitchell for an academic excellence award. “She leads by example, demonstrating respect, kindness, and unwavering support for fellow students, faculty, and staff.”

Now, set to graduate, Mitchell plans to go on to study cyber forensics at 99������Ƶ. Asked if studying criminal justice helped resolve some of the questions surrounding her grandmother’s accident, Mitchell said “yes and no”. The program fed her desire for knowledge: she learned about criminal law, juvenile justice, and why people tend to commit crimes. What was not satisfied was her own desire for clarity and justice.

“I haven’t really learned anything about hit-and-run accidents,” she said. “When the accident happened, there were things I thought probably happened, and I still don’t know for sure; it’s hard to tell.”

One thing has become clear: North Carolina feels like home. Three months after moving to the area, Mitchell met her fiancé. Now living in Candler, she is excited to tackle cyber forensics, a subject her grandmother had always encouraged her to explore.

In the meantime, Mitchell is thriving despite experiencing great loss and grief. She has emerged as a self-assured woman with strong values. And her grandmother’s legacy lives on.

“(My grandmother) worked for herself, and she worked super hard cleaning houses,” Mitchell said. “She always taught me to work hard for what I want. To be independent and work for myself and not anybody else.”