As the summer of 2012 moves along rapidly heralding the beginning of the 2012-13 academic year I have the privilege to share information on some events and activities that demonstrate the excellence of the School of Criminal Justice during the past academic year. I am very pleased to highlight various achievements of faculty members during this year. Associate Professor David Foran has been promoted to the rank of professor; Assistant Professor Jesenia Pizarro has been tenured and promoted to the rank of associate professor; and, Assistant Professor April Zeoli has been reappointed to another 3 year term.
I am also very pleased to bring to light awards and recognition received by some of our alumni in academia. In a recent article in the Journal of Criminal Justice Education, an analyses of Top Female Stars in Criminology and Criminal Justice listed three of our graduates among the top 20 around the world. These include: Beth Huebner (University of Missouri at St. Louis), Kristi Holtfreter (Arizona State University), and, Barbara Koons-Witt (University of South Carolina, Columbia). Please join me in congratulating all three of them for their contributions and achievements!
During this academic year a record number of doctoral students (7) defended their dissertations and were awarded PhDs. In addition, 66 students graduated with their MS degrees in Criminal Justice, Forensic Science, and Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysis. Our faculty members continue to expand their research initiatives securing funded research to study a wide range of topics that include terrorism, community corrections, and community policing and safe neighborhoods, among others.
Our faculty and students had an excellent year in terms of their research efforts reaching to various audiences in the national and international conferences as well as publications in highly ranked journals. They have addressed critical issues on various subjects in forensic science, policing, terrorism, juvenile justice, and many other criminal justice related topics both locally and nationally.
Over the last year, the Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection Program has leveraged its initial momentum to transform into a dynamic, multidimensional and growing program of transnational research, education and outreach. A crowning achievement over the last year includes the successful growth of its Industry Advisory Board, which now includes executives from General Motors, Johnson and Johnson, Qualcomm, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, and Callaway Golf. It also named two academic fellows and an industry fellow who are collaborating with A-CAPPP researchers to help build a science of product counterfeiting and anti-counterfeit strategy.
We have had a very successful year in terms of our outreach efforts. The school had secured nearly half a million dollars in funding to offer professional development programs for the U. S. Air Force in the area of Crime Prevention/Resource Protection and workshops for Abu Dhabi’s Judicial Department among others. We received notification in the past few weeks that C.S. Mott has accepted our proposal for a third year of work with the Flint Police Department. The award is for $350,000 and includes a technology audit and updating a 2004 (911) Consolidation Study between the City Flint and Genesee County (911) dispatch consortiums.
I am very honored to have had the opportunity to serve as interim director while Ed McGarrell was away on a sabbatical leave during the academic year 2011-12. He will be returning as director August 16, 2012 to lead the School into the coming year.
Meanwhile, enjoy reading the Summer 2012 e-newsletter.
– Mahesh Nalla, interim director
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