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Program Prioritization Report
Department of Criminal Justice
College of Human Ecology
Part II Narrative
Productivity

According to UNC-GA data for FY 2009-2010 (no data available for 2011), the department’s
BSCJ program ranked 3rd among constituent institutions in undergraduate enrollment and
the number of baccalaureate degrees awarded (Source: UNC-GA).

The department’s degree program ranked 7th among the Top Ten Undergraduate Degrees
Awarded at East Carolina University in FY 2010 (latest year data are available) (Source: UNCGA).

The department is highly productive in meeting the primary core mission of the university,
which is teaching. For example, during FY 2009-2011 unit faculty generated 24,492 student
credit hours (SCH) with an overall enrollment of 8,164 in undergraduate and graduate
courses. In AY 2010-2011 alone, enrollment increased 13.2 percent over the previous year
(Source: Sedona).

The mean number of declared undergraduate criminal justice majors is 401 and 56 for
graduate majors during FY 2009-2011. This figure does not include intended majors or
declared minors (Source: Sedona).

In Spring 2011, the department revised the Master of Science in Criminal Justice (MSCJ)
curriculum and admission requirement. Among the changes was the addition of a distance
education admission option. Projections are that MSCJ enrollment and student credit hours
will increase because of the availability of the online degree (Source: GCC for curriculum).

The AY 2010-2011 unit workload analysis, which includes teaching and research
productivity, shows that department tenured and tenure-track faculty had a mean FTE
workload factor of 1.72 with the high/low range at 2.0/1.51 (Source: 2010-2011 CJ unit
workload analysis prepared for AA).

As productive researchers and scholars, department faculty (Part I, item 1)during FY 20092011 published 32 works (i.e., articles, book chapters, and books), presented 27 conference
papers, and obtained 7 grants/contracts (Source: Sedona)

Likewise, the department faculty is engaged in a wide range of service to the profession,
university, college, unit, student, and community. Among the service highlights, one-half (5)
of unit faculty is an editorial board member and/or peer reviewer for 20 different refereed
scholarly journals (international and national). And one is an invited academic reviewer for
the Home Office (UK). Three faculty members are academic advisors to student
organizations including the ECU national criminal justice honor society chapter (Source:
Sedona).
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Centrality

As noted in Part I, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projections 2008-2018 state that disciplinerelated protective service vocations will increase by an average of approximately 15 percent
over the period. This figure neither includes several allied vocations (i.e., attorney, juvenile
specialist, victim advocate, intelligence analyst, etc.) in the discipline nor speaks to the
transformations occurring in the post-911 era. After 9/11, the discipline’s (criminal justice)
emphases in the areas of education, research, policy, and practice focused more than ever
before on evidence-based and intelligence-led decision making in regards to national and
transnational crime and terrorism threats. Furthermore, the emerging paradigm centers on a
multi-dimensional, interdisciplinary, and multi-national approach that incorporates globalism
and diverse discipline integration (Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics).

In light of these changes, the department has undertaken a critical evaluation of curricula and
programs to ensure currency, relevance, student preparedness, and educational access. Several
steps have been taken. First, the unit has organized an advisory board comprised of
distinguished community, educational, and professional leaders from across the justice-related
field and sought their input on programming. Second, the department revised the MS in
Criminal Justice curriculum in 2010 and the Bachelor’s degree (BSCJ) curriculum is being
evaluated with revisions scheduled to be submitted to the UCC in fall 2011. Third, departmental
representatives have met with regional community colleges to map out an articulation
agreement for transfer students to facilitate their completion of a Bachelor’s degree at ECU.
Both the planned articulation agreement and addition of the MSCJ distance education option
make the department’s degrees and courses more accessible to students across the region and
beyond.

Department programs and faculty are actively engaged in 22 of the elements of ECU’S Strategic
Action Plan particularly in the areas of global awareness, cultural diversity, leadership, and
extra-departmental collaboration. In terms of global engagement, the unit has several faculty
and programs that center on cultural diversity and international studies. For example, one
faculty member is a specialist in international study and actively serves as an editorial board
member, peer reviewer, and professional member with academic publications/organizations in
Europe and Asia. Not to mention, that the department has tenure-track faculty members who
are native to Iran, Jamaica, and Japan. Several curricular and faculty features and/or activities
evince the department’s commitment to global, multi-cultural, and collaborative engagement.
First, the BSCJ degree plan requires all undergraduate majors to complete the core course JUST
3700 Race, Gender, and Special Populations in the Criminal Justice System. The course examines
multi-cultural issues and effects on persons involved with the criminal justice system. Second,
the department offers courses in comparative criminal justice and international terrorism study
with two faculty members having specializations in comparative and international subjects.
Third, the department has a study abroad program which in 2011, in collaboration with the
University of North Texas, conducted a comparative study course in England and France. The
course was co-instructed by a department faculty member. Fourth, in 2010 three foreign
exchange students from La Trobe University (Australia) and University of Manchester (UK)
enrolled in department courses to study criminal justice and forensic science. Fifth, a unit faculty
member delivered an honors course entitled “Crime and Criminal Justice: An Interdisciplinary
Approach to a Global Challenge” in the new ECU Honors College. The first ever course, involved
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faculty participation from numerous disciplines across ECU. Sixth, two departmental graduate
students are currently conducting a comparative study on global crime rates under the
mentorship of department faculty. Last, two department international faculty members have
given presentations on topics in their native countries at university and college events.

In terms of meeting critical student need, UNC-GA 2009-2010 (latest available) data show that
the criminal justice bachelor’s degree is ranked 8th (871) overall among all undergraduate
degrees awarded by constituent institutions in the UNC system (Source: UNC-GA).
Quality

Concerning successful output, as noted the department’s Bachelor’s program ranks 3rd among
UNC institutions in the discipline and 7th overall at East Carolina University in terms of
undergraduate degrees awarded.

Department faculty, in FY 2011 alone, has been not only been recognized for their
accomplishments as teachers and scholars but had their expertise sought by governmental
agencies. First, Dr. Patrice Morris was honored by the national Homicide Research Working
Group for her research on urban violence. She has recently published an article in the highly
acclaimed British Journal of Criminology while also being recognized by the International
Criminal Justice Review as author of one of the “50 most read articles.” Second, Dr. John Kerbs
was one of six ECU professors to receive the prestigious University of North Carolina Board of
Governors Distinguished Professor for Teaching Award. And his 2010 co-authored article in
International Criminal Justice Review is also listed as one of the most read that year. Third, Dr.
William Bloss was named, as the only US representative, to the Program Committee of the 2011
Conference on Criminalistics in Europe. Fourth, the City of Greenville Public Safety Task Force
contracted with a department faculty research team to conduct a study on crime and police
satisfaction in Greenville, in collaboration with the Greenville Police Department. Fifth, the
North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention asked department
researchers to conduct a multi-year program evaluation in conjunction with a US Department of
Justice supported program in the region.

Department alumni have achieved noteworthy professional accomplishments. Among those is
Michael Gilchrist, Commander, North Carolina Highway Patrol, Hon. Regina Parker, Judge 2nd
Judicial District, Cassandra Deck-Brown, Deputy Chief of Police, Raleigh Police Department,
Frank Rogers, Deputy Secretary, North Carolina Department of Correction, Kim Strach, Deputy
Director(campaign finance investigations), North Carolina State Board of Elections, Douglas
Morgan, Special Agent in Charge, National Science Foundation Office of Investigations, Richard
Chavez, Director, Operations Coordination, US Department of Homeland Security, just to name a
few. This partial list of criminal justice leader alumni suggests that the department programs
and faculty are producing graduates who are well prepared for success.
Opportunity Analysis

The evidence shows that the department and its faculty have a longstanding record of
exemplary teaching and scholarship. In terms of productivity and quality, the department has
been effective in fulfilling its educational mission. The substantial numbers in enrollment,
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graduation rate, degrees conferred, and alumnus accomplishments demonstrate that
department programming is meeting the needs of students and preparing graduates for success.
At the same time, faculty expertise, research, and scholarship are significantly contributing to
scientific discovery and knowledge sharing while improving justice policy and practice. Together,
the aim is to improve public safety and enhance community well-being. Clearly, these are areas
of strength for the department.

Yet, the department recognizes that it must be responsive to the changes in the discipline,
student learning enterprise, workforce/advanced study preparation demand, and globalization
effect. Some of these dynamics have been noted here as well as departmental efforts to adapt
to new demands and paradigmatic shifts. To that end, programs, curricula, student enrollment
trends, faculty specializations, and faculty recruitment strategies are being critically evaluated to
ensure that they are current, relevant, and operationally efficacious. As noted, modification and
revision in specific areas are in progress.

Thus far, however, the findings suggest that curricular and programmatic adaptation should
occur more in two principal centrality areas―interdisciplinary/institutional collaboration and
global engagement. These are opportunity areas rather than departmental weaknesses.
Adaptation should focus on increasing academic activities in interdisciplinary, multi-cultural, and
international studies. New partnerships as well as program development here would enrich
students, keep pace with disciplinary changes, and create additional productivity opportunities.

Though discouraged here, a realistic discussion of future vision cannot exclude the issue of
needed resources. In order for the department to sustain its tradition of excellence, make
needed programmatic adaptation, remain cutting edge, and seize growth opportunities, the
paucity of resources must be addressed. Personnel and space shortages are the largest threat
to the department’s long term success. Numerous opportunities for growth (i.e., enrollment,
revenue, faculty scholarly productivity, external reputation enhancement, etc.) have been
missed because of a lack of needed resources. For instance, one of our most popular degree
programs must limit its laboratory course enrollment to 18 students because the only space
available is shared with another unit and has that number of workstations. Although there is
always room for improvement and beneficial adaptation has been noted herein, what the
department needs most to sustain and improve productivity, centrality, and quality are
adequate resources to fulfill its educational mission.