Karla Castillo said she remembers being little watching “Law and Order” and “Criminal Minds” with her dad. With family back in Mexico working in law enforcement, Castillo said she had always seen herself in a similar job.
Her family told her it would be one of those things she’d grow out of — just a phase. Now a senior at IU with only two semesters left to complete, Castillo is both an IU Police Department cadet and part of the National Guard.
Castillo is originally from Lansing, Illinois. She started her college career at IU-Northwest but transferred to IU-Bloomington last January.
“I just wanted to try something different,” Castillo said.
She put in her application for the IUPD cadet program after Capt. Greg Butler, director of public safety education for IUPD, came to speak to one of Castillo’s classes about it.
It took about a month for Castillo to hear back about a final interview with the department. At first she thought she didn’t make the cut.
Now in her second semester of cadet training, Castillo said a large part of her experience so far has been tailored to campus security. She has been stationed so far at Dunn’s Woods, Ballantine, the Hyper, as well as at football games, specifically to band and first aid areas.
While Castillo’s career in law enforcement has just started, she has served in the US military for four years.
“I left for boot camp literally the week after I graduated high school, like right after,” Castillo said.
According to Glamour magazine, a study conducted by University of Kansas researchers last fall identifies a largely male-oriented culture in military settings, despite the influx of female personnel. The author of the study, Alesha Doan, said it’s the military mindset that must be readjusted to reflect society’s recent strides in industry policy for women, in particular.
In both her law enforcement and military career paths, Castillo said she hasn’t encountered any discrimination or irregular treatment because of her gender.
Authority figures in both her cadet and military trainings have treated Castillo fairly, she said, just as they would any other individual.
However, she admits she has seen discriminatory types of behavior in a military setting before.
“When I went through boot camp, I’ve never experienced it but I’ve witnessed others, my peers, being sexist to others,” Castillo said. “I don’t think they mean to do harm, some just think women shouldn’t put themselves out there.”
Castillo said she thinks these differing viewpoints probably come from the blend of different cultures, backgrounds and people being raised differently.
Once Castillo finishes the spring semester as a cadet, she will enroll in IUPD’s summer academy and take up a role as a part-time officer on the Bloomington campus next fall until her graduation in December.
Castillo said her goal is to one day work in federal law enforcement, specifically the FBI. For Castillo, the coming months are all about building up her résumé and finishing her prerequisites.
