School of Criminal Justice Honored for its Commitment to Equity, Public Safety at 50th Anniversary Event

The Rutgers-Newark’s School of Criminal Justice was honored for transforming lives and government policy locally and beyond at a 50th anniversary event where federal, state and city officials touted its work.

Nancy La Vigne, a School of Criminal (SCJ) alumna and director of the National Institute for Justice, described the school as the best in its field nationwide. She praised its emphasis on “public criminology,’’ a collaborative approach that focuses on the experiences of people impacted by the criminal justice system.

Her education at SCJ and the school’s recent work has informed her approach as director of the institute, she said.

“This notion of public criminology is in the school's DNA,’’ said La Vigne. “Inclusive research takes the time to engage with people who are closest to the problems being studied. It’s engaging with people who experience the system, people who experience matters of crime and justice.”

The event, titled Rutgers SCJ at 50: Fifty Years of Public Engagement for Safety and Justice, also included remarks from Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, Interim Chancellor Jeffrey Robinson, and former Chancellor Nancy Cantor, who is now president of Hunter College.

The School of Criminal Justice has been at the forefront of criminology research and education since it was established by the state legislature in 1974, a time of growing public concern with rising crime rates. Officials recognized the need to improve the quality and effectiveness of the justice system in New Jersey and nationally. It has grown into an institution dedicated to advancing equity across the criminal justice system.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka spoke of the school’s impact, which contributed to a 40 percent decrease in city’s crime rate through programs like the Newark Public Safety Collaborative, which analyzes locations associated with low-level crimes, such as abandoned buildings, vacant lots, and spots with poor lighting, rather than targeting perpetrators. It shares data with community partners and helps them take steps to protect neighborhoods.

“It’s been a blueprint for how to deploy our resources,’’ said Baraka. “It helped us create a synergy between the city and the university.”

He added, “Lucky for us, we’ve got one of the best criminal justice institutions in the state of New Jersey, so we get real data in real time. We’re doing better than we were doing 20 years ago because of Rutgers, because of this institution here.’’

Former Chancellor Nancy Cantor lauded the school for helping to abolish deep-rooted inequities. “Heavy-handed police strategies, shocking levels of inequality of arrests and incarceration, looking at this through a social justice lens considers the impact on families and communities,’’ said Cantor. “We think about not only how we can make change, but who we are preparing as change makers. And that is embedded in the heart of what this school has done.’’

“You can’t do these things without caring about place. And that’s what SCJ and Rutgers-Newark is all about,’’ she continued. “The notion that this is a celebration of publicly engaged scholarship is so critical. Co-production of knowledge starts with those who live the experience and those who want to change the experience. And the scholar is transiting between those two things.’’

Interim Chancellor Jeffrey Robinson noted that the 50th anniversary launch event was the first in a year-long series of occasions to celebrate the school. “It has taken its place as one of the prestigious schools of criminal justice in the nation,’’ he said. “It has done incredible things, not just here in Newark but around the country.’’

Todd Clear, who has served as both former SCJ dean and Rutgers-Newark provost, recounted the school’s history from it’s start as an institution known for its work in effective sentencing laws and incarceration to its more recent, nationally recognized research on prison reentry, children of incarcerated parents, and mandatory fines and fees in New Jersey and other states. Additional work has included studies on race and juvenile justice, incarceration rates and policing. 

The NJ Step program, which provides a college education to the incarcerated, was also hailed as a success.

Following remarks by keynote speakers, was a panel discussion, led by La Vigne, that included Victoria Kuhn of the NJ Department of Corrections Commissioner, Warren Thompson of Newark Public Safety Partners and Lincoln Park Coast Cultural District, Jennifer Sellitti of the New JerseyPublic Defender’s office,  Ronald Pierce, New Jersey Deputy Ombudsperson for the  Department of Corrections, and Lori Scott Pickens, Director of Community Outreach for  Rutgers School of Criminal Justice.