Current Newsletter (@ John Jay) - November 18, 2009

@John Jay Worth Noting November 18-22 8:00 PM Il Furioso: The Birth of Modern Justice

A dual-language adaptation of Aeschylus’ “Eumenides” Presented by the Department of Communication and Theatre Arts with support from the Department of African American Studies Gerald W. Lynch Theater

November 19 10:00 AM 2009 Annual Career Fair Sponsored by the Office of Career Development Services Gymnasium, Haaren Hall

November 30 5:30 PM Tattletales and Victims: Rethinking Police Use of Confidential Informants

Presented by the Center on Race, Crime and Justice Delores Jones-Brown, Director, CRCJ Jon Shane, The Police Foundation Room 1311, North Hall

December 2 6:00 PM Moot Court in Forensic Computing Sponsored by the Master’s Program in Forensic Computing Room 230, Haaren Hall

News and Events of Interest to the College Community November 18, 2009

Leading New Yorkers Saluted at Annual ‘Educating for Justice’ Gala More than 300 supporters and friends of John Jay College joined members of the college community on October 29 for the annual “Educating for Justice” Gala, where Herb Sturz together with Lynn and Jules Kroll were honored for their lifelong contributions to public service and civic betterment. The gala raised a record-breaking sum in excess of $550,000, including a generous contribution of $50,000 by Dick Tarlow, a member of the John Jay College Foundation Board. The proceeds of the evening will benefit various student initiatives. A former New York City deputy mayor and creator of such programs as the Vera Institute for Justice and The After-School Corporation, Sturz received the Award for Social Entrepreneurship. In presenting the award, Jack Rosenthal, President of The New York Times Company Foundation, described Sturz as “the most imaginative and effective public policy innovator of our time.” John Jay President Jeremy Travis said: “Throughout his career, Herb Sturz has embraced a philosophy he calls ‘double or triple social utility’ — working to help one population while helping another. He wrings optimal benefit from every investment of time, money and talent.” Award-winning journalist Ken Auletta presented the Award for Civic Leadership to Lynn and Jules Kroll for their deep and enduring commitment to philanthropy and public service. Jules

President Travis (right) enjoys a moment during the “Educating for Justice” Gala with (from left) presenter Jack Rosenthal, honoree Herb Sturz, presenter Ken Auletta, and honorees Jules and Lynn Kroll.

Kroll is a pioneering figure in the modern corporate investigative and security industry, while his wife, Lynn, is a veteran leader of numerous nonprofit institutions, including the UJA-Federation of New York and the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services. “Jules Kroll has drawn upon his vast experience in his role as chairman of the John Jay

College Foundation, providing superlative leadership for the board and the John Jay community,” Travis said. The gala featured entertainment by LinManuel Miranda, the Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist of the Broadway hit “In the Heights,” and Henry Butler, the legendary New Orleans-based jazz and blues pianist.

State of the College Address Cites ‘Breathtaking’ Changes President Travis Calls for New Master Plan to Carry John Jay to 50th Anniversary in 2014

“We should feel confident that working together…we can move the world. Let’s get started.” With these words, John Jay President Jeremy Travis concluded his annual State of the College address on October 21, in which he spoke of creating a vision for the College for the next five years, as John Jay approaches its 50th anniversary in 2014. The master plan that Travis called “John Jay @ 50,” which he hopes to produce by the end of the academic year through a collaborative effort, will address questions surrounding the core issue of how John Jay will be different in 2014 while remaining true to its mission of “Educating for Justice.” Travis launched his address with a review of the “simply breathtaking” changes that have occurred in the past five years to create a “revitalized” John Jay. Among those he cited were: • A 40-percent increase in the size of the entering class of baccalaureate freshman students, to 1,657; • A 33-percent increase in the size of the College’s full-time faculty, with 50 percent of those faculty members having been hired in the past five years; • Creation of educational partnerships with community colleges to provide joint associatebaccalaureate degree programs through what has been called the CUNY Justice Academy; • Development of new undergraduate majors in English, Economics, Global History and Gender Studies, and graduate programs in Forensic Mental Health Counseling and International Crime and Justice, with several more bachelor’s

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and master’s degree programs “in the pipeline”; • Creation of a First-Year Experience program to enhance student success; • Redesign of the Honors Program, the science and math curriculum, the general-education curriculum and several existing baccalaureate majors; • Significant improvements in technological infrastructure, internal and external communications, and fundraising from government and private sources; • The “emergence of the John Jay research juggernaut,” with grant receipts more than doubling in the past four years. “No other institution in the world can claim that its faculty are so deeply involved in so many pressing issues of justice and injustice,” Travis said. “As we move forward to John Jay @ 50,

we should ensure that the College remains an ‘institution of consequence’ — that we partner with agencies and individuals who would benefit from the expertise of our faculty, the passion of our students, and the independence of an academic institution.” In looking ahead, Travis conceded an uncertain future that could include a weakened national economy, depressed tax revenues and unprecedented shortfalls in government budgets. Nonetheless, he reassured the audience in the Gerald W. Lynch Theater, “my top priority will be to sustain our forward momentum…. We may need to tighten our belts and slow the pace of change, but I am confident that we will continue moving forward toward a shared vision of the John Jay of the future.” The development of a new Master Plan for

John Jay comes as the College is about to begin the multi-year process leading to reaccreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, and launch an initiative to increase retention and graduation rates. Travis said the Master Plan will be the result of a series of “robust discussions” including forums, focus groups, town hall meetings, surveys and “idea walls,” all leading to a document “that reflects our best thinking, our high hopes and our commitment to excellence.” [For the complete text of the President’s State of the College 2009 address, go online to www.jjay.cuny.edu/Stateofcollege.pdf. To view the five-year “road map” of milestones for the Master Plan, Middle States reaccreditation and retention initiatives, go to www.jjay.cuny.edu/ StateoftheCollege_Roadmap.pdf.]

Lynch Leads John Jay Parade of Obama Appointees John Jay is poised to expand its imprint on the uppermost echelons of the U.S. Justice Department, with the announcement by the White House that President Obama plans to nominate Distinguished Professor James Lynch as Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). If confirmed by the Senate, Lynch would join Ellen Scrivner, former director of the John Jay Leadership Academy, and alumnus Benjamin Tucker (BS, 1977) in the Obama Administration. Scrivner has been appointed as Deputy Director of the National Institute of Justice and Tucker has been tapped as Deputy Director for State, Local and Tribal Affairs of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. According to President Jeremy Travis, “While the College will miss Dr. Lynch, we are honored that a highly regarded member of our faculty has been nominated to such an important position in the Obama Administration. He brings to the position a wealth of knowledge and practical experience that will be invaluable to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the nation.” Lynch, a member of the Department of

Criminal Justice, is a widely acknowledged expert on crime statistics and victimization surveys. He previously served on a National Academy of Sciences panel that evaluated BJS programs. He is the current vice president-elect of the American Society of Criminology and co-editor of the Journal of Quantitative Criminology. Scrivner, a police psychologist, is “a nationally recognized authority on community policing as well as one of the leading experts on a wide range of policing issues, including recruitment, hiring and training,” noted Travis, who served as director of NIJ, the Justice Department’s research arm, during the Clinton Administration. Scrivner said joining the Obama Administration will allow her to “help advance the agenda of those who value criminal justice research and evidence-based practices.” She is no stranger to the National Institute of Justice, having served as an NIJ Visiting Fellow studying police use of excessive force. Tucker, a retired New York City police officer, has served in numerous government positions, including Deputy Director for Operations of

Distinguished Professor James Lynch

the Justice Department’s Office of CommunityOriented Policing Services and Executive Director of the New York City Commission on Human Rights.

John Jay Takes the Lead in Citywide ‘Celebration of Able-ism’

College Remembers Its Own with ‘Treats for Troops’ Outreach Effort

On October 21, John Jay became the first college in New York to host the city’s Disability Mentoring Day, one of the highlights of National Disability Employment Awareness Month. The day, described by Vice President for Student Development Berenecea Johnson Eanes as “a celebration of able-ism,” was launched with a breakfast ceremony attended by the students who would be shadowing mentors in the Division of Student Development and learning about the different functions and services provided by units in the department. Chris Rosa, CUNY’s University Assistant Dean of Student Affairs, called the occasion an historic day in which hundreds of people with disabilities citywide would have the opportunity to be mentored. “You will be the next generation of leadership, in part because of mentoring opportunities you receive,” Rosa said, addressing students at the ceremony. “And when you get there, remember to reach back and become a mentor yourself.” Rosa and Matthew Sapolin, Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, praised John Jay for assuming an unrivaled leadership role in promoting equal access and opportunity. “That campus culture at John Jay begins at the front door,” Sapolin said, praising an unidentified security officer who met him at the entrance to Haaren Hall. The mentor/mentee relationship is a two-way street, Sapolin emphasized, and one that should lead to expanded horizons in the business and professional world. “We all face obstacles,” he said, “but we have to make the workplace understand that those obstacles are removable.”

John Jay boasts the largest number of military veterans of any student body in the City University system, so the notion of “supporting our troops” comes naturally, during wartime or anytime. In that vein, the College’s Office of Community Outreach, in conjunction with the Veterans Club and Homeland Security Club, has launched a Treats for Troops campaign as a way of bringing relief to military personnel serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The campaign has set up collection sites on campus where volunteers are seeking donations of toiletries and other sundries, baby wipes, antifungal creams, socks, non-aspirin pain relievers, food items, holiday candy, “gently used” magazines, books and videogames, phone cards and letters of support. Monetary donations to cover the costs of packaging and shipping are also appreciated. “The title for our benefit drive, Treats for Troops, is derived from a national organization that delivered thousands of care packages to soldiers all over the world,” said Director of Community Outreach Declan Walsh. “We are hoping to reinstate the Treats for Troops mission of providing relief to soldiers on active duty overseas as a college community.” Among the John Jay students who have already received care packages from the Treats for Troops effort, Walsh said, are Sgt. Yevgeny

John Jay’s prominent role in local celebration of Disability Employment Awareness Month got an additional boost when Danielle Officer, interim Director of the College’s Office of Accessibility Services, served as an invited presenter at a program sponsored by the FBI’s New York office. The program, organized around the theme “Expectations + Opportunity = Full Participation,” was attended by FBI staff employees and senior executive management.

Sgt. Yevgeny “Gene” Gershman, one of the beneficiaries of the Treats for Troops campaign.

Gershman, who is serving in Iraq with the 192nd Military Police Battalion, and an unidentified female student who is now on her third tour of duty in Afghanistan. For more information on the Treats for Troops drive at John Jay, call 646.557.4820, or visit the Office of Community Outreach in Room 3408 North Hall.

Chris Rosa (seated), the University Assistant Dean of Student Affairs, chats with President Travis, Danielle Officer of the John Jay Office of Accessibility Services and Vice President for Student Development Berenecea Johnson Eanes at the kickoff ceremony for Disability Mentoring Day.

International Conference Heads to Morocco The ancient city of Marrakesh, Morocco, will be the site for John Jay’s Ninth Biennial International Conference, “Societies in Transition: Balancing Security, Social Justice and Tradition,” from June 2-5, 2010. The conference, presented in partnership with Hassan II University and the Advisory Council on Human Rights of the Kingdom of Morocco, will bring together scholars, practitioners, government leaders, police officials and representatives of international organizations in an effort to promote international and interdisciplinary understanding of justice issues in the broadest sense. The conference’s program committee, chaired by Professor Chitra Raghavan of the

Department of Psychology, has issued a call for papers soliciting proposals for symposiums, presentations or posters on relevant themes, including legal reform, terrorism, human rights, transnational trafficking in drugs, arms and human beings, financial crimes, gender and social justice, and more. Proposals should reflect scholarly work and may be submitted in English, French or Arabic. The deadline for submitting abstracts or panel proposals is December 15. For more information on the conference, go online to www.jjay.cuny.edu/ic, or contact Ken Lewandoski, Director of the Office of International Studies and Programs, at [email protected].

Author, Author!

Sociology Professor David Green (right) was in the spotlight at the Book & Author lecture on October 19 for a discussion of his book When Children Kill Children: Penal Populism and Political Culture, which was awarded the 2009 Book Prize by the British Society of Criminology. Joining Green on the panel were (from left) Distinguished Professor of Criminal Justice Jock Young and Stephen Handelman, Director of the Center on Media, Crime and Justice.

FACULTY / STAFF NOTES BETWEEN THE COVERS

PRESENTING…

JEREMY TRAVIS (President) and ANNA CRAYTON (Prisoner Reentry Institute) coauthored an article “Offender Reentry” that appears in 21st Century Criminology: A Reference Handbook, Vol.2 (Sage Publications, 2009), edited by J. Mitchell Miller.

MICHAEL PFEIFER (History) presented a paper, “Racial and Class Frontiers: Vigilantism and Criminal Justice in the Late Antebellum United States,” at the Western History Association Conference in Denver on October 9. HOWARD PFLANZER (Communication and Theatre Arts) co-produced Erotik Politik Cabaret: A Sexual and Political Romp at The Living Theatre in Manhattan on October 25. The production was a series of readings and performance pieces written by Pflanzer and others. THOMAS A. KUBIC (Sciences) was an invited speaker at the Trace Evidence Symposium sponsored by the National Institute of Justice and FBI in Clearwater Beach, FL, August 2-7. His lecture on “Examination of a 13-Year-Old Crime Scene for a War Crimes Trial, or Is it Ever Too Late to Examine a Crime Scene?” dealt with murders that took place in Rwanda in mid-1990s. Also at the symposium, JOHN A. REFFNER (Sciences) presented a poster concerning his research, conducted with graduate students Vanessa Martinez and Brooke Weinger, on the “Application of Diamond Internal Reflection @ John Jay is published by the Office of Marketing and Development John Jay College of Criminal Justice 899 Tenth Avenue, New York, NY 10019 www.jjay.cuny.edu Editor Peter Dodenhoff Submissions should be faxed or e-mailed to: Office of Communications fax: (212) 237-8642 e-mail: pdodenhoff@jjay.cuny.edu

JOHN MATTESON (English) was the guest of honor and featured speaker at an October 9 fundraising luncheon at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center in Hartford, CT. Here he poses with fellow Pulitzer Prize-winning biographers Debby Applegate (left) and Joan D. Hedrick, who introduced Matteson at the gathering.

Infrared Microscopical Analysis of Mineral and Glass Trace Evidence.” NICHOLAS PETRACO JR. (Sciences) presented a poster on “The Statistical Significance of the Aggregate Trace Evidence Found in Dust Specimens.” DALE PURCELL and REBECCA BUCHT, doctoral students in forensic science who are both laboratory instructors at John Jay, also presented posters on their research. KIMORA (Law, Police Science and Criminal Justice Administration) delivered a talk titled “How Is the Criminal Justice System Impacting our Community?” at Reality House, Inc., on September 24. Reality House assists individuals, families, veterans and communities in leading productive lives during the re-entry process.

PETER MANUEL (Art & Music) recently published three books: Creolizing Contradance in the Caribbean (an edited volume), The Reggae Scene: The People, the Image, the Music (a coauthored children’s book), and Chowtal Rang Bahar: A Treasury of Chowtal Songs from India and the Caribbean (a co-edited anthology of Indo-Caribbean folksongs). His 1988 book Popular Musics of the Non-Western World, earlier translated into Japanese, was recently translated and published in Korean. He is currently working on a video documentary on Indo-Caribbean music. PETER MOSKOS (Law, Police Science & Criminal Justice Administration) published an article, “From Amsterdam, Lessons on Controlling Drugs — If It’s On the Shelves, It’s Off the Streets,” in the October 25 Washington Post Sunday Magazine. His article “Angels in Blue: The Virtues of Foot Patrol” appeared in the September/ October 2009 issue of The American Interest. JODIE G. ROURE (Latin American/Latina/o Studies) had her book chapter “The NCLB, Race, Ethnicity, Class and Diversity: Creating a High School to Law/Graduate School Pipeline for Underrepresented Students” published in

educating for justice

Our Promise: Achieving Educational Equity for America’s Children (Carolina Academic Press, 2009), edited by Maurice Dyson. DOROTHY MOSES SCHULZ (Law, Police Science & Criminal Justice Administration), working with Dr. Rita Wirrer of the Unit for International Police Cooperation in RhinelandPalatinate, Germany, has created a bibliography of items pertaining to women in policing around the world that may be downloaded from the Police Futurists International Web site, (www. policefuturists.org). The items include books and articles written in English, French, German and Dutch.

PEER REVIEW ROBERTA BELLI (Sociology), an adjunct faculty member and a student in the John Jay/CUNY doctoral program in criminal justice, received a National Institute of Justice graduate research fellowship for her dissertation on “Where Terrorists, Far-Right Extremists and Greedy Criminals Meet: A Comparative Study of Financial Crimes in the U.S. The award was one of only six given out this year, and the first federal dissertation award won by a criminal justice PhD student in the 45-year history of the program. JOCK YOUNG (Sociology) has been named winner of the 2009 Distinguished Book Award presented by the American Society of Criminology’s Division of International Criminology. He was cited for Cultural Criminology: An Invitation (London Sage, 2008), which he co-authored with Jeff Ferrell and Keith Hayward.