In Criminology, we address these questions:
- How is crime socially defined?
- What social forces influence how we think about crime?
- What is the relationship between social processes and the making of criminal law?
- What social factors influence criminal behavior?
- How are different groups affected by crime and crime control?
- What roles does punishment play in society?
- What can social institutions do to reduce human conflict and injustice?
Undergraduate Study
The concentration in Criminology and Criminal Justice is available at the undergraduate level. This curriculum is grounded in a liberal arts approach to and critical perspective on crime and criminal justice. Our principal objective is to provide students with the analytic tools for understanding both the variable sources and dynamics of crime and crime control. We hope thereby to promote both humane understanding of criminological issues and democratization of the crime-control apparatus. The undergraduate criminology curriculum also provides the substantive background and analytical skills essential for students who subsequently pursue graduate studies in sociology or criminal justice.
Graduate Study
The specialty in Criminology is available at the Masters and Doctoral levels. Our objectives are:
- to promote critical understandings of the relationship between social forces and crime definition, criminal behavior, and the institutions and dynamics of social control;
- to apply sociological theories to research on crime and criminal justice;
- to provide tools for the analysis of fundamental crime and criminal justice issues, including the preservation of peace and the safeguarding of due process and civil rights in a democratic society.
The Sociology Faculty in Criminology
- Michelle Brown, Professor
Carceral Studies; Feminist Perspectives; Law & Society; Theory; Culture & Media; Transformative Justice - Shaneda Destine, Assistant Professor
Race, Class, and Gender; Black Social Movements; Intersectionality; Critical Race and Political Economy - Kyra Martinez, Lecturer
Criminology - Bill McClanahan, Assistant Professor
Critical Police Studies; Green, Visual, and Sensory Criminology; Rural Criminology and Sociology; Appalachian Studies - Lois Presser, Professor
Criminological Theory, Restorative/Community Justice, Narratives of Violent Offenders and Victims of Violence - Jeremy Smith, Lecturer
Green Criminology; Human-Animal Interaction; Criminological Theory; Critical Police Studies; Law and Society - Vivian Swayne, Lecturer
Criminology, policing, culture, housing, and sexuality - Christine Vossler, Lecturer
Narrative Criminology, Narrative Victimology, Gender, Harm, Violence - Tyler Wall, Associate Professor
Critical Police Studies; State Violence and Racial Capitalism; Law & Society, Race and Class - Stephen Wulff, Assistant Professor
Critical Criminology; Punishment; Policing and Social Order; Law & Society; Social Movements; Urban Sociology