Federal Leader and Alumna Nancy La Vigne Named Dean of Rutgers School of Criminal Justice

Nancy La Vigne, a renowned criminal justice researcher and former leader in the U.S. Department of Justice under President Biden, has been named Dean of the Rutgers School of Criminal Justice. 

La Vigne, a 1996 graduate of the School of Criminal Justice’s doctoral program, directed the National Institute of Justice (NIJ)  for the past three years, overseeing the Justice Department’s research, technology development and evaluation efforts.

“I’m thrilled and honored to be returning to Rutgers School of Criminal Justice as its dean. The school’s stellar reputation for strong scholarship and meaningful policy impact in service of safety and justice was what attracted me to enroll as a doctoral student and has continued to inspire me as an alumna,’’ said La Vigne.

“As the school celebrates its 50th anniversary, I look forward to working with the faculty, students, staff, alumni, and larger Newark community to build off its extraordinary history and develop a transformative vision of what criminal justice education, scholarship, and practice can be in its next 50 years and beyond,’’ she added.

La Vigne’s work focuses on data-driven and research-informed improvements to policy and practice on a wide array of criminal justice topics and justice-involved populations. Throughout her career, she has focused on bridging the divide between researchers, practitioners and policymakers, helping both communities and justice system professionals apply science and data to inform public safety efforts.

 She has also been at the forefront of a movement to conduct research that is inclusive of the expertise, experiences, and perspectives of the professionals, stakeholders, and community members who are closest to the issue or problem under study. She will begin her role as dean in March.

During her tenure at NIJ, La Vigne launched a new “evidence to action” initiative designed to spur the adoption of research findings by policymakers and practitioners. She also implemented  new research investments on evaluating alternatives to 911, recruiting and retaining more women in policing, supporting officer wellness, and improving environments for people who work and are confined in correctional settings.
 
Her career has included serving as Vice President of Justice Policy at the Urban Institute, a nonprofit social policy research organization, where she led a team of researchers and was co-principal investigator for a groundbreaking study on reentry from prison. She also served as executive director of the Charles Colson Task Force on Federal Corrections Reform, guiding data-driven recommendations for reform that set the foundation for the First Step Act, which is designed to reduce the federal prison population while maintaining public safety. 

La Vigne, who grew up in New Jersey, graduated from Smith College with a major in Government and received her master’s degree from the School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.

“We are excited to welcome Dr. La Vigne back to New Jersey and Rutgers-Newark. Her experience as a respected leader, administrator and scholar is an incredible match with the School of Criminal Justice, which is renowned for its work,’’ said Interim Chancellor Jeffrey Robinson. “We are looking forward to the connections and relationships that Nancy will cultivate across the state to increase research opportunities for faculty, expand curricula for various stakeholders, and increase internship and experiential placements for students."

“Nancy is not only one of our most distinguished alumni, but she brings to the position an unmatched network of associations across the broad spectrum of scholars who study crime and justice. While her own scholarship is, of course, impressive, what sets her apart is a long record of facilitating, developing and leading scholarly teams pursuing the full range of topics of interest to the field of criminology,’’ said Todd Clear, a School of Criminal Justice professor who has served as a past dean of the school.