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Forthcoming
and Recent Events
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De GRIM TRAINS with the U. S. BOBSLED& SKELETON FOUNDATION
Skeleton trainees at Lake Placid. (Brendan is 4th from the left in the back row.)
Sophomore CJ major Brendan De Grim took a break from his Fall classes to train for world cup competition in skeleton racing at Lake Placid, NY . The skeleton was invented in 1892 and adapted in 1970 for competition on Bobsled runs. Plunging down these runs headfirst at speeds of up to 90 mph is De Grim's kind of thing. While he didn't make the world cup team this time, he plans to continue his training. After completing his Marywood CJ degree, he hopes to enter the state police or the coast guard.
NEW FORENSIC MINORS
Two new undergraduate minors in forensics are now available; both are 18 credits and open to students in any major.
The first, in General Forensics, introduces students to this interdisciplinary field with courses in Criminal Justice, Biology and Psychology. The six courses are: CJ 100, Introduction to Criminal Justice, BIO/CJ 105, DNA Forensics, CJ 220, Law Enforcement, CJ 324, Criminal Investigation, CJ 332, Criminalistics & the Crime Lab, and PSY 440, Forensic Psychology.
The second minor is jointly sponsored by the Social Science and Business Departments. Forensic Accounting introduces students to expanding career opportunities investigating tax fraud, money laundering, illegal international fund tansfers, and the like. The six courses in this minor are: CJ 100, Introduction to Criminal Justice, CJ 324, Criminal Investigation, BUS 130, Accounting Principles I & II, BUS 331, Intermediate Accounting I, BUS 332, Intermediate Accounting II, and BUS 433, Auditing Principles & Procedures.
For more information about either one contact Walter Broughton, Director of Criminal Justice Programs at broughton@marywood.edu.
STREET GANG STRATEGY: A Community Workshop in Criminal Justice
November 9 , 2006
Marcus Felson, Professor at the Rutgers University School of Criminal Justice, presented a four hour workshop on juvenile street gangs in November of 2006. The workshop dispelled many of the misconceptions about juvenile gangs, reduced confusion about them, and provided a more realistic image of gangs and what they do. Professor Felson has been a leader in crime theory (routine activity theory) and also in the application of that theory to crime prevention. He is the author of Crime and Everyday Life, Opportunity Makes the Thief, and Crime and Nature, and over 80 professional papers. He has served as a consultant on crime prevention to many agencies and organization here and abroad. In 2002 he was recognized by the Western Society of Criminology for "Outstanding Contribution to the Field of Criminology."
CELEBRATING GRADUATION 2006
Marywood celebrated its 88th annual commencement May 13th and 14th. Criminal Justice graduates joined in:
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Masters degree recipients Kelly Armstrong and Jonathan Wasp at the Hooding ceremony |
Undergraduate CJ majors after the ceremony
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l - r: Dustin Rhodes, Barbara Rohan, Becky Dyer, Todd O'Donnell, Nick Wong, Sheri Kaushus, Andy Burian, Dave Kimble, Amy Clark |
MARYWOOD TO EVALUATE LIFESKILLS PROGRAM
Dr. Broughton, Raymond Colleran, and Jon Wasp have been awarded a contract to conduct an independent evaluation of a Life Skills program at the Lackawanna County Jail. Operated by the Employment Opportunity Training Center in Scranton, "Stepping Up" is one of 13 programs funded by the U. S. Department of Education through out the U. S. This federal initiative is intended to reduce the return to crime among former inmates. The evaluation will measure the effects of participation upon subsequent recidivism and assess the ease with which the Scranton program can be replicated at facilities elsewhere in the country.
WHAT WORKS IN CORRECTIONS: A Community Workshop in Criminal Justice
April 6, 2006
Edward J. Latessa, Ph.D., Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of Cinncinatti, presented a day long workshop at Marywood in April of 2006 on correctional interventions. His workshop focused on what works in reducing recidivism among offenders. Participants learned about the principles of effective intervention, how they were derived and how they are applied. Programs that are effective in reducing recidivism have certain characteristics. Each of these characteristics were discussed and examples from a wide range of programs were presented. Professor Latessa is a coauthor of Corrections in America, now in its 10th edition, and five other books, as well as over 80 scholarly articles on issues in American corrections.
Graduate students Jeff Dengler and Barbara Rohan pose with Dr. Latessa. |
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MARYWOOD CJ SENIORS PRESENT AT THE PACJE MEETINGS
April 9th , 2005
Twelve CJ majors presented their research on inmates of American jails at the meetings of the PA Association of Criminal Justice Educators in Harrisburg on April 9 th . The seniors discussed problems of jail overcrowding, the care of mentally ill inmates, the characteristics of HIV positive prisoners, and the effects of educational programming on recidivism rates. They were joined by student and faculty presenters from over 15 other PA colleges and universities.
GRADUATE STUDENT PROMOTED BY MINSEC-SCRANTON
Jon Wasp, MSCJ candidate, has been promoted to Facility Director of Minsec-Scranton, a 40 bed Community Correctional Facility (including 18 inpatient alcohol and drug treatment beds). As Director, Jon is responsible for the facility's clinical programming and administration. Minsec promotes offender reintegration through cognitive life-skills training and referrals to community health and social services.
ELIJAH ANDERSON SPEAKS ON VIOLENCE IN THE INNER-CITY
February 13, 2005
 Elijah Anderson, Charles & William L. Day Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, spoke February 13 th in Marywood's Nazareth Hall on “Violence and the Inner-City Poor.” Dr. Anderson is the author of A Place on the Corner and Code of the Street , studies of life in inner city Philadelphia.
Before his Sunday lecture, Dr. Anderson had dinner with interested students and faculty. On Monday he met with students in sociology and criminal justice classes where he described his recent work on the life of Philadelphia cabbies, the problems of work reentry among ex-convicts at a car wash, and race relations in cosmopolitan social settings such as the Reading Market.
SEXUAL VIOLENCE: A Community Workshop in Criminal Justice
November 16th, 2004
Roy Hazelwood, Senior Vice President, AGI, presented a day long workshop in November of 2004 on sexual crime, paraphilias, and sexual sadism. Noted author, speaker and consultant, Mr. Hazelwood worked for 16 years in the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit. He has testified before both houses of Congress and a Presidential commission, and served as a consultant to the UN on the Bosnian war crimes. He is the coauthor with Stephen Michaud of The Evil That Men Do and Dark Dreams, both by St. Martin's Press. The afternoon featured a panel including: Anna Faramelli, Women's Resource Center, Andy Jarbola, Lackawanna County District Attorney, and Jennifer McCarthy, NY Forensic Mental Health, among others.
FIRST MSCJ STUDENTS GRADUATE
May 9, 2004
 Marywood's first MS CJ students completed their degree this spring. Shown here is Tammy Boris with then Dean of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, Lou Furmanski. Tammy has accepted a position with the PA Board of Probation & Parole where she is working as an investigator for the Sexual Offenders Assessment Board. All convicted sexual offenders in PA are subject to an investigation before sentencing. As an investigator, Tammy completes a report which includes: interview of offender (when participating), police reports, victim statements, prior criminal history, county and state probation/parole records, county and state prison treatment records, prior and contemporaneous pre-sentence investigations, children and youth records, CHILDLINE records, and other criminal/social service agency records.
CJ STUDENTS PRESENT THEIR RESEARCH AT MONMOUTH UNIVERSITY
April 9, 2004
On April 9 th five Marywood CJ majors presented their senior research projects at Monmouth University on the Jersey Shore. The  conference drew students from Caldwell and St Peter's colleges, Bloomsberg, Monmouth, Wilkes, Southern Connecticut, as well as Marywood universities.
Jeff Fanucci presented his study of physical and sexual abuse among male inmates. Cynthia DeLawrence reported the results of her study of gender discrimination in American jails, Ryan Palmiter spoke on the evidence he found for rational choice in crime. Becky Bednarz and Dana Witchey described their study of the effects on crime and substance abuse of early alcohol use. After the paper sessions, students and faculty  relaxed over dinner before returning to Scranton.
Jeff Fanucci commented, “ I thought this was a good experience. I appreciated the comments I received from audience members. I included some in my final draft.” Cynthia DeLawrence said, “I hated preparing for the conference, but once I got there it was fun. It was a lot of work, but I'd do it again.”
BAD CHOICES/HARSH REALITIES
March 18, 2004
On March 18 th the Criminal Justice club sponsored a program featuring inmates at the Schuylkill Federal Prison Camp. Three inmates and their  counselor, Verle Flemming, met for two hours with an audience of Marywood students and faculty. The inmates arrived on campus in their green prison uniforms. Counselor Flemming kept his handcuffs ready.
To participate in the program, inmates are required to write an essay stating their reasons for doing so. Successful essays are followed by an interview with Flemming who questions each man about their regret for what they have done, their willingness to change, and their desire to help others avoid the bad choices they have made.
 The speakers included a prominent nightclub owner, the owner of a successful financial services agency, and a drug dealer. Each described his career in white collar crime and his life as an inmate. Although two speakers continued to protest their innocence of the offenses for which they were convicted (but not others crimes), each acknowledged they had made very bad choices. Their audience left with mixed feelings, but all were moved by these mens' descriptions of the impact their conviction had upon their wives and children.
ALUMNUS VISIT
January 2004
Alumnus John Bendzunas returned to Marywood last February to speak with majors about his career as an Officer with the U.S. Probation Service in Burlington, Vermont. A 1999 Marywood CJ graduate, John received an MA in Criminal Justice from the State University of New York at Albany one year later.
As a federal Probation Officer John devotes much of his time to preparing pre-sentence reports. Used by the courts to sentence offenders, these reports include a narrative of the offense, a detailed criminal history, and a social profile of the defendant, including information on their family, education, work history, history of substance abuse, and health—both mental and physical. John described the subtle skills Probation Officers often need when mediating differences between U. S. Attorneys and the defendant's counsel.
John reflected on his work at Marywood—particularly his senior project examining sentencing differences between white and Afro-American offenders which allowed him to move rapidly through Albany's graduate program.
FROM INSIDE OUT: VIEWS OF THE AMERICAN PRISON
October 16th, 2003
Jennifer Wynn, author of Inside Rikers, and Gene Guerrero, Sr. Policy Analyst with the Open Society Policy Center, were featured in a November 2003 Community Workshop in Criminal Justice examining the American use of incarceration. The United States imprisons a larger proportion of its population, nearly half of 1%, than any other developed nation except Russia. That rate has doubled in the past 20 years and continues to grow. Guerrero addressed the causes of this rise, its consequences for our society, and alternatives to incarceration. Wynn described the rich tradition of literature written by Americans who have been incarcerated. The afternoon session featured local presenters: Judge Richard P. Conaboy, former chair of the Federal Sentencing Commission, Warden John Nash of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and Ernest D. Preate Jr., former PA State Attorney General and prison inmate.
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Jennifer Wynn and attendees |
Gene Guerrero |
DRUG CONTROL: CAN’T WE DO BETTER?
April 14th, 2003
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In this Community Workshop in Criminal Justice, Kevin B. Zeese, President of Common Sense for Drug Policy, challenged a large audience of criminal justice and addiction professionals to reexamine American drug policies. Our present policies, he contended, foster guerrilla warfare in drug producing third world societies, damage the credibility of the criminal justice system, overtax our prison system, and undermine our ideals as a free society. Zeese suggested that we look to the Netherlands, Canada, and other societies that take a public health approach to addiction problems. These countries have decriminalized drug possession and use, nationalized drug treatment, and refocused their criminal justice efforts on illicit drug trafficking.. Zeese was joined in this program by a local panel including Judge Thomas I. Vanaskie, Chief Judge for the U. S. Middle District of PA, Joseph P. Donohue, Chief Probation Officer, U. S. District Court, Scranton, and Michael D. Donohue, Program Administrator, Luzerne-Wyoming Counties Drug & Alcohol Program.
THE ETHICS CHALLENGE IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE: A Community Workshop in Criminal Justice
November 5th, 2001
Kate Lynott, Sr. Education Specialist with the Federal Judicial Center, described the often difficult ethical challenges which confront criminal justice professionals. Working with case scenarios, she discussed how to identify an ethical problem and how to resolve it. Finally, she described how standards of ethical conduct can become a meaningful component of the culture of criminal justice agencies.
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