The use of scientific research to improve criminal justice in the U.S. will be discussed by National Institute of Justice Director and WSU alumna Nancy Rodriguez at 4 p.m. Monday, March 28, in the CUB auditorium at WSU Pullman.
A Washington native, Rodriguez was appointed by President Barack Obama in October 2014. Her agency annually provides millions of dollars in federal support to researchers nationwide seeking to understand and improve the administration of justice – from figuring out what types of policing or sentencing programs reduce crime to understanding why the war on drugs has failed to stem the U.S. drug epidemic.
Justice Rodriquez earned her Ph.D. in political science at WSU in 1998. Her academic research ranges from the collateral consequences of imprisonment, to the intersection of race, ethnicity, crime and justice, to evaluations of drug courts and restorative justice programs.
Her presentation is part of the Thomas S. Foley Distinguished Lecture Series.