Justice System Training and Research Analyst
Job Description
Enabling students to work collaboratively with faculty and staff will provide a more rich educational experience based upon real-world problem solving. Students will progress through more incrementally challenging action research phases that will build their skills and knowledge while at the time provide justice organizations with information to support their mission. It will provide concrete skills that can translate into specific job opportunities. As criminal justice has become more data-driven, these types of roles are more analytically orientated.
Year 1
Responsibility/Function
Course Development:
- Assist with instructional development for its core Command Training series seminars, as well as other JSTRI professional training. For example, students will assist our part-time instructors with assembling their student materials and handouts, as well as research podcasts and online videos that support their courses.
- Improving web and social media presence for JSTRI. Drafting new web content including images that assist our marketing of programs.
Criminal History Research:
- Collect and quality control criminal history data for gang members’ pre- and post-focused deterrence program. Using the State of Connecticut’s public criminal history website, students will collect arrest and conviction data for offenders in a violence reduction program.
Emerging Issues Research:
- Researching emerging topics such as the legalization of marijuana and its impact on justice resources, the use of crime analysis in police agencies, the use of body-worn cameras on police legitimacy, managing the opioid crisis, the efficacy of mental health and autism awareness training for justice professionals. End-products will include training briefs, literature reviews and short presentations for justice practitioners and staff.
Year 2
Responsibility/Function
Criminal History Research:
- Develop analytical products on gang member offending pre- and post-program to determine the effectiveness of this violence reduction program. The students will present their findings to criminal justice agency representatives.
Traffic Crash Analysis:
- Collection of traffic crash and police pursuit data to enhance regional traffic safety initiatives. Students will collect, quality control, process and analyze data to present to traffic safety officials as a decision-making tool.
Course Development:
- Enhancing existing instructional materials through additional graphic design, updated evidence-based practices and student engagement exercises.
Survey Development:
- Students will learn how to develop community surveys to examine satisfaction with police services, fear of crime and community disorder concerns. This will entail developing specific research questions and hypotheses, operationalizing important variables and designing indicators to measure those variables in a community setting.
Year 3
Responsibility/Function
Proposal Development:
- Students will develop criminal justice research proposals and grant applications that conform to methodological and human subjects review board standards. Students will carry out research with faculty and instructor mentors during this period.
Staff Studies:
- They will draft staff studies on relevant issues raised by our criminal justice partners such as implementing new technologies like license plate readers or geographic information systems.
Conference Presentations:
- Students will present their research and evaluation projects at regional and national criminal justice and public safety conferences through presentations, poster displays and student papers.
Media and Information Products:
- Students will design analytical products such as presentations, media articles and stories for dissemination through RWU and local media sources.