Bridging the Gap: Equipping Future Criminologists and Criminal Justice Professionals for Data-Driven Justice

• In Event: Lightning Talk: Strengthening Criminal Justice Through Education and Training

Abstract

The increasing prevalence of data and analytics in criminal justice demands a paradigm shift in criminology and criminal justice education. While traditional curricula emphasize theory and law, future criminologists and criminal justice professionals require data and information literacy to critically engage with data-driven policies and practices, especially at a time where data can be exploited or misinterpreted to fit a predefined outcome, expectation, or policy directive. This presentation highlights the urgent need to integrate data literacy, encompassing understanding data sources, analytical techniques, bias awareness, and ethical considerations, into criminology programs. By adopting active learning approaches with real-world datasets, we can empower students to become informed consumers and ethical producers of criminological and criminal justice knowledge, fostering a more just and equitable future.

Author

• Shannon Therese Grugan, West Chester University