Chaparral High School
Scottsdale, Arizona
Tarnisha Tilson is a Career and Technical Education (CTE) Criminal Justice (Law & Public Safety) instructor at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD). Through the Criminal Justice program, she works to provide students with meaningful opportunities to explore the legal system, criminal justice careers, civic responsibility, and the role they can play within their communities.
Tarnisha incorporates several law-related and civic education programs into her classroom. Her students participate in Teen Court, where they are able to experience the court process in a hands-on setting and better understand accountability, decision-making, and the role of the justice system. She has also incorporated Constitution Day into the program and has attended Mock Trial training to continue expanding mock trial opportunities within the Criminal Justice program. In addition, Tarnisha has served as a judge for Project Citizen, giving her the opportunity to support students as they examine public policy issues and civic engagement.
Her Criminal Justice students have also participated in CSI Arizona, providing them with an opportunity to explore crime scene investigation, forensic science, and the real-world application of investigative skills.
Through the We the People program, Tarnisha teaches students how to think critically about the U.S. Constitution, constitutional principles, individual rights, and the relationship between government and the legal system. She works to help students move beyond simply learning constitutional concepts by connecting those concepts to criminal law, court decisions, public policy, and careers within the legal field.
Tarnisha also incorporates Kids Voting AZ into the Criminal Justice program as another way to connect civic education to the legal system. Kids Voting AZ encourages students to develop lifelong voting habits while giving them an opportunity to participate in the democratic process through a simulated election experience. Within her classroom, Tarnisha connects elections to positions that directly influence the criminal justice and legal systems, including sheriffs, county attorneys, attorneys general, judges, legislators, and other elected officials whose decisions can shape laws, public safety, prosecution, courts, and justice policy. This helps students understand that voting is not separate from the legal system, but one of the ways citizens influence who holds authority within it.
These experiences also serve as work-based learning within Career and Technical Education (CTE). Tarnisha believes students should have opportunities to apply what they learn in the classroom through authentic experiences that connect academics, civic engagement, career exploration, and the workplace. Through Teen Court, Mock Trial, CSI Arizona, civic education programs, industry partnerships, guest speakers, and other hands-on experiences, she works to help students see how classroom learning connects to real careers and responsibilities within the criminal justice and legal fields.
At the center of Tarnisha’s teaching is the belief that Criminal Justice education should prepare students not only for careers, but also to become informed, responsible, and engaged members of their communities. She strives to create experiences that challenge students to think critically, understand different perspectives, and recognize the role they can play within the legal system and society.