National Gun Control Expert Alan Lizotte Appointed Dean of UAlbany's Top-Ranked School of Criminal Justice

 

ALBANY, N.Y. (March 4, 2010) -- University at Albany President George M. Philip announced the appointment of Alan Lizotte as dean of the University�s top-ranked School of Criminal Justice. A highly-published scholar and distinguished faculty member, Lizotte was appointed after a national search chaired by Jeffrey Straussman, dean of the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy. Lizotte has been serving as interim dean of the School since last July.

"I am confident that under Dr. Lizotte's leadership, the School's reputation will grow as a top-tier research program, expanding its role in our community and nation while it fosters new international relationships," said President George M. Philip.

Lizotte is one of the nation's leading experts on gun use and violence, criminology and juvenile delinquency. He is a founding member and principal investigator of the Rochester Youth Development Study (RYDS). His work as co-principal investigator on several RYDS studies has garnered more than $25 million in grants over the past 20 years. He is also the executive director of the School's prestigious Hindelang Criminal Justice Research Center, which develops policy recommendations in the field of criminal justice, disseminates research results through publication in scholarly journals, and provides opportunities for graduate students to learn research skills and to develop dissertation topics. He has been a member of the Center's board continuously since 1986.

He  received the American Society of Criminology's Michael J. Hindelang Award in 2003 for the Most Outstanding Contribution to Research in Criminology, and in 2009, received UAlbany's President's Award for Excellence in Research and UAlbany's Graduate Student Association's Faculty Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Development.

He served from 2004 to 2007 as an executive counselor of the American Society of Criminology. Locally, he is serving on the City of Albany's selection committee in its search for a new chief of police. He received his master's degree and Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Illinois and his bachelor's in sociology from Brown University.

UAlbany's School of Criminal Justice examines the political, economic and cultural patterns that shape definitions of crime and influence policy. The School of Criminal Justice has been ranked consistently among the top two schools in the nation. Developed in the late 1960s, the School became the first Ph.D-granting criminal justice program in the nation, and its interdisciplinary �Albany Model� curriculum has been emulated throughout the nation. School alumni are serving in the expanding academic field of criminal justice research and teaching and all the operating agencies of criminal justice, in addition to the many private and non-profit organizations which provide services or make policy recommendations.

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