coyotebuster,
A couple of things: I applaude you for your decision to go into Criminal Justice. It's often a thankless, dangerous, miserable way to go. And you sure as heck won't make any money doing it. But, for those who go into it as a career and do it well, you're motivations are a little different than most of the other guys out there trying to make a living.
Also, in the way of advice, were I you, I'd worry more about getting your Academy or P.O.S.T. certification taken care of before you get an AS, AA, BS, BA or any college degree. Maybe things are different in the midwest, but out here, most departments and agencies won't hire you w/o POST certification, and few have college degree requirements. You really ought to look at getting your POST done first(most every state recognizes POST certification from other states, with some additional requirements sometimes), then going onto college. That way you can work while your going to school, actually doing what you're receiving training in, pay your tuition and bills, and have a boat load of experience in hand, when you get your "sheepskin" and be in a great position for promotion in the agency your in, or a very good candidate for the DEA, US Customs, US Marshalls, or some other federal or state agency, if that's where you want to end up.
It occurrs to me that you may be too young to get into an academy anytime soon. In which case, I'd get going on some college, and get into POST as soon as you become eligible.
If you are looking to go to school out west, at a school with a strong CJ Department, let me highly suggest my alma mater - Weber State Univ. It's a smaller University in Ogden, Utah, (I forget the number of students, but WSU plays football as an NCAA Division I AA, in the Big Sky Conference, if that means anything to you.) and home to one of the best CJ Departments in the West, if not the country. They have an on-site crime lab, used by a lot of the local agencies, a CJ faculty made up almost entirely of former Fed agents, corrections agents and wardens, local LEOs, and DA's or AG attorneys. They have a "branch" of the Utah POST Academy on campus, that you can attend, that meets in the evenings and on Saturday. To say nothing of all the hunting, fishing, skiing and other recreation oppurtunities that are in easy reach. You can go to their website at
http://www.weber.edu . You might also want to look at Southern Utah University. They've got a good CJ program down there, and also have a POST branch, with a part-time program. Awesome scenery, and a ton of hunting and outdoor's possibilities. Near a lot of National Parks, Monuments and other such places. It's in Cedar City, Utah which is a smaller city, with a lot of mountainous, desert and rural area surrounding it. It's smaller than Weber, but not by a whole lot. Again, as I most easily think in terms of football, they're NCAA Division I AA, and I think play as an independent or in the Mid-Continent Conf. Here's there website:
http://www.suu.edu
Now, to the subject of a CCW, if you want to be an LEO, you'll have to gain investigation skills. Digging through the lies, half-truths, and hear-say to get to the fact of the matter is essential. To that end, check out
http://www.packing.org and to a lesser extent
http://www.nra.org to get the facts on the states you have questions about. I know in Utah you must be 21 years old and it wouldn't surprise me if it's the same across the board.
Good luck with your endeavours!