Summer/Fall 2016 Vol.1, Issue 1
Hello! Prompted by the many exciting initiatives and accomplishments in our department, Seattle University's Department of Criminal Justice has decided to launch our first-ever Seattle University Department of Criminal Justice E-Newsletter. Published twice annually Summer/Fall and Winter/Spring (it will alternate with our graduate program E-Newsletter releases in Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer) we will be sharing quarterly news updates about departmental goings on.
This past year has been particularly exciting for our department thanks to an unprecedented number of research grant awards and donations. These funds will enhance our capacity to engage students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels in criminal justice research and service while continuing to grow our programs and launch new initiatives. Our students are finding employment, specifically with agencies on which they set their sights years ago. They have worked hard to complete their academic requirements, obtaining internship and research experience to support their career goals, and we are excited to celebrate their many accomplishments. When I go downtown, I can barely walk a few steps before I bump into a former graduate who is now working in the criminal justice field as a law enforcement officer, community corrections officer, defense attorney, prosecutor, crime analyst, victim advocate, you name it! Every one of these encounters reinforces my belief that Seattle University is the best Criminal Justice Department in the west and one of the best there is in terms of educating students to create powerful and positive change in the criminal justice system. I am excited to be able to regularly feature all that our department is doing in the community to create a safer, more hopeful, just, and humane world.
Of the many current applied research projects, Seattle U’s Department of Criminal Justice is excited to share with you the ongoing collaboration with the Seattle Police Department to evaluate the Seattle Police Micro-Community Policing Plans. The SUCJ-SPD collaboration is described in detail on the Seattle Police Department website: http://www.seattle.gov/seattle-police-department/mcpp. This collaboration is a two-year study of the SPD MCPP initiative which was implemented in 2014 by SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole. SU CJ Department Chair Dr. Jacqueline Helfgott and fellow faculty Dr. Will Parkin head the research which began in 2014 -- projected evaluation completion slated for the end of 2016 -- with plans to continue the MCPP initiative in phase II of the project, pending funding. Under the MCPP, community residents work in partnership with their local precinct captain and Community Policing Team to identify problems, analyze existing quality of life and crime data, and design individualized plans to reduce and prevent crime. As part of the MCPP, SPD partnered with Seattle University to evaluate the initiative which includes conducting focus groups throughout the city as wells as the development and administration of a micro community level survey -- the first of its kind -- to gain a better understanding of the degree to which people feel safe in their communities and what influences their safety perceptions.
This initiative is unprecedented on a number of levels: the project has allowed our department to offer paid research assistantship/research analyst positions to five graduate students, each of whom are assigned to one of the five Seattle Police precincts, and one undergraduate research assistant/analyst who assists with the overall project. To date a total of nine graduate students and one undergraduate student have worked as SPD MCPP Research Assistants/Analysts on the project. The first cohort of SPD MCPP RAs were: Karmen Schuur – North Precinct; Matt Thomas-East Precinct; Grace Goodwin-South Precinct; Jennifer Burbridge-Southwest Precinct; and Zhanna Kachurina-West Precinct. With students graduating, additional students have assumed the MCPP RA positions: Shannon Ro-East Precinct; Jessica Chandler-North Precinct; Chase Yap-West Precinct; Brooke Bray-South Precinct; and Jennifer Burbridge-Southwest Precinct. Joseph Singer has worked as the undergraduate RA throughout the course of the project.
This collaboration provides an exciting opportunity for students to work as “embedded researchers,” simultaneously offering an extraordinary learning and research opportunity while at the same time providing a service to the Seattle Police Department and the community. As of this writing, two of the SPD MCPP RAs have been hired full-time with Seattle Police as an officer (Matt Thomas) and a Crime Analyst in the Data Driven Unit (Karmen Schuur). Additionally, the SPD MCPP initiative has entailed working with the SPD Data Driven Unit, creating opportunities for students to interface with other SU CJ students hired full time with the SPD data driven unit (Gloria Lara). The number of SU CJ students and alums working at SPD continues to grow. Many thanks to SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole, Assistant Chief Carmen Best, Lieutenant Adrian Diaz (pictured above with current SPD MCPP RAs), and the many SPD personnel who have worked with SUCJ on this project.
For more information on the SPD MCPP go to:
SPD MCPP: http://www.seattle.gov/seattle-police-department/mcpp/about-mcpp, and
Seattle Police Blotter “Seattle U Public Safety Survey Results Released Alongside New Micro Community Policing Plan Website”: http://spdblotter.seattle.gov/2016/07/14/seattle-u-public-safety-survey-results-released-alongside-new-micro-community-policing-plan-website/
Our department's Center for the Study of Crime and Justice (CSCJ) brings together researchers, academics, and criminal justice professionals involved in the study of crime and justice to collaborate on research, continuing education and training, service initiatives, and public events. We will be featuring ongoing collaborative initiatives and progress of the CSCJ in future newsletters, but for now would like to share some of the many projects in which our department has been involved through the CSCJ:
Collaborative Research
United States Probation and Pretrial Services Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practice: Ray Cowles (MACJ ’16) and Caitie Healing (MACJ ’16) are completing their first year as Research Analysts on a funded collaborative research initiative with United States Probation and Pretrial Services – Western District. Ray and Caitie work alongside Drs. Helfgott and Gunnison under the leadership of Chief of USPPS, Connie Smith (SUCJ alum ’88 and member of the SUCJ Advisory Committee).
Pictured (left to right): Connie Smith, Ray Cowles, Caitie Healing
Seattle Women's Reentry evaluation: Tia Squires (MACJ/JD), Nadine Guyo (BACJ Forensic Psychology) and Kidst Messelu (MACJ) have been hired to work as Research Assistants with Drs. Helfgott and Gunnison on an evaluation of the Seattle Police Department’s Seattle Women’s Reentry Initiative. This project, funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance Second Chance Act Grant, will involve a mixed-method evaluation examining the reentry trajectories of women released to King County from the Washington State Corrections Center for Women.
Evaluation of the Effects of Guardian-Oriented Law Enforcement Training: Emily Malterud (MACJ) is employed as a Research Assistant working with Drs. Helfgott and Hickman on a study evaluating the effects of the guardian training at the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission. Emily's is work at WSCJTC in Burien involves administering pre- and post-survey instruments to Basic Law Enforcement Academy cohorts and conducting follow-up surveys and interviews as part of an ongoing longitudinal study of the guardian elements of the WSCJTC training curriculum.
Continuing Education & Community Events
Kelvin Crenshaw Hosts Discussion about Recent Shootings of Black Citizens and Police.
Retired Special Agent in Charge of Seattle Field Division, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Kelvin Crenshaw hosted an informal discussion attended by students and interested SU community members on August 9th, 2016. In addition to his professional experience with the ATF, Kelvin Crenshaw has been a member of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) for more than 20 years, as well as a member of the Criminal Justice Advisory Board for the past decade. The discussion was an informal precursor to a more formal event, "Shared Dialogue on Policing & Protest in the United States" on October 11, 2016 in Pigott Auditorium.
The Criminal Justice Department received two generous gifts from donors:
The Marion J. Helenkamp Endowed Scholarship in Criminal Justice of 500K will provide scholarships to Seattle University Criminal Justice students. Marion Helenkamp graduated from Seattle University in 1953 and went on to be the first-ever African American woman lieutenant in the L.A.P.D. At Ms. Helenkamp’s passing in 2015, her family donated a portion of her estate to the Seattle University Department of Criminal Justice. The first Helenkamp Endowment Scholarship is slated to be awarded in 2017-18.
The Blume Criminal Justice Scholars Program. 250K was generously donated by Ann and Bruce Blume to fund student scholarships as well as an endowment that will support scholars in perpetuity. The Blumes awarded the Seattle University Department of Criminal Justice this generous fund to further important research, practice, and service at the intersection of criminal justice and mental health.
Our department will award the Blume Criminal Justice Scholarship to two students annually -- $2500 will go to one undergraduate and one graduate student who will also serve as student members of our department's advisory committee for the the 2016-17 academic year. We are proud to announce that our 2016-17 Blume Criminal Justice Scholars are Ellary Collins (BACJ, Forensic Psychology) and Brook Bray (MACJ)! Ellary just completed an internship with the Seattle Police Department's Crisis Intervention Team Coordinator, Sgt. Dan Nelson (pictured to the right of Collins).
Brooke is a research assistant with the Seattle Police Micro-Community Policing Plans Initiative in the South Precinct. In addition to her MCPP involvement, Brooke has served as an intern for Dr. Richard Adler, Forensic & Clinical Psychiatry; completed a neuropsychology internship; and is currently completing her Master's thesis on Crisis Intervention in law enforcement.
Ellary and Brooke were selected from a competitive group of student nominees based on both their contributions as well as their potential to continue to make an impact to advances at the intersection of criminal justice and mental health. Ellary's and Brooke's names will be placed on an ongoing list of Blume Criminal Justice Scholars and will serve on our department's advisory committee as the 2016-17 Blume Scholars.
A warm THANK YOU to the Blumes and Helenkamps -- The faculty and students of the Seattle University Department of Criminal Justice will work hard to further the goals of the Blume Criminal Justice Scholarship and to honor the legacy of Lieutenant Helenkamp!
Keeping up with all of our graduates securing criminal justice positions becomes more difficult every day. With this newsletter we will begin to feature students who have obtained employment in the criminal justice field. In recent months, several of our students have been hired for full-time positions with the Seattle Police Department: Graduates Matt Thomas (MACJ ’16), pictured on the left, and Josh McLeod (MACJ '15), pictured to the right, were hired as officers. Current students Gloria Lara and Karmen Schuur, pictured above with Lead Crime Analyst, Mark Bridge, landed positions as data analysts in the Seattle Police Department’s Data Driven Unit. Congrats to Matt, Gloria, Josh, and Karmen who are taking advantage of the many opportunities provided by Seattle University Criminal Justice.
If we missed anyone else recently hired by SPD or other agencies, please let us know so we can share the news in future newsletters!
Dr. Matthew Hickman elected President of the Western Society of Criminology and Hot Off The Press new book Policing in the 21st Century!
Our own Dr. Matthew Hickman has been elected 
President of the Western Society of Criminology for 2016-2018!
In addition to assuming his new duties with the Western Society of Criminology, Dr. Hickman found time in his busy schedule to publish a new book – hot off the press: Policing in the 21st Century with Kendall-Hunt Publishing!
Drs. Helfgott and Gunnison Selected as Editors of Western Society of Criminology's Journal of Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society.Department chair, Dr. Jacqueline Helfgott, and director of graduate programs, Dr. Elaine Gunnison, have been appointed co-editors of the Journal of Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society. This academic journal is a publication of the Western Society of Criminology which features articles on research and practice related to criminology, criminal justice, and criminal law and society. Their three-year term as co-editors will begin February 2017.
With our department's active role in the WSC this year (in addition to Pres. Hickman and co-editors Gunnison and Helfgott, Drs. Stephen K. Rice and John Vinson will be serving as WSC Board Members!) we hope to have a large group of students and faculty presenting at/attending the WSC Annual Conference which will be held this year in Las Vegas February 9-11, 2017. Deadline to submit abstracts is October 7, 2017!
Sadora Anderson (BACJ 2006 and MACJ 2011) passed away suddenly in late August. Sadora was an undergraduate and graduate student in the Department of Criminal Justice and worked as a court clerk for King County District Court. Sadora completed her Master’s thesis “Factors Leading to Drug Addiction and Drug Trafficking as Well as Gender and Racial Specific Factors Which Contribute to Addictive and Trafficking Behaviors” in 2011, working very closely on the project for several years with her thesis chair Dr. Elaine Gunnison.
Sadora has two sons, Jordan who will be going to college at Western WA University this fall and four-year old Jamil. While she was an undergraduate and then a graduate student in our department Sadora would bring her son Jordan with her to classes, to her thesis defense, and finally to her graduation. It is clear how proud Jordan was of his mom. Sadora was adored by the CJ faculty and her fellow students many of whom she remained friends with over the years. She was a remarkable role model, a warm, funny, bold, and kind person, and one of the hardest working people this department has known. Her death is a great loss to her children, her family, Seattle University Criminal Justice, the criminal justice community, and the world.
NO! So, please send news of the work you are doing for inclusion in a future Seattle University Department of Criminal Justice newsletter to: Devin MacKrell, Seattle University Department of Criminal Justice Program Coordinator mackrell@seattleu.edu/ (206)296-2139.
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Dr. Elaine Gunnison
Graduate Program Director
206.296.2430
gunnisone@seattleu.edu
Dr. Jacqueline Helfgott
Department Chair
206.296.5477
jhelfgot@seattleu.edu
Carol Lwali
Graduate Admission Counselor
206.296.2217
lwalic@seattleu.edu
L. Devin MacKrell
Program Coordinator for Graduate Program
206.296.2139
mackrell@seattleu.edu
