REU Site: Communities, Crime, and Criminal Justice in Detroit (C3JD)

This project is funded from the Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Sites program in the SBE Directorate. It has both scientific and societal benefits, and integrates research and education. The Communities, Crime, & Criminal Justice in Detroit (C3JD) REU provides selected undergraduate students with a rigorous and highly supportive experience in which they will learn about and actively engage with the various components of the research process.

The focus of C3JD REU projects is to advance research on issues at the intersection of communities, crime, and criminal justice. This includes three distinct research projects that examine: 1) the factors that influence Detroit residents’ willingness to call upon formal and informal forms of social control in responding to crime; 2) the degree to which perceived legitimacy and procedural justice affect Detroit residents’ cooperation with police; and 3) the ways in which Detroit’s demolitions program, by far the largest in the U.S., has impacted Detroit residents’ views of their communities, of crime, and of the criminal justice system.

Supporting students from under-represented backgrounds will generally contribute to the future equality and health of higher education. Involvement of under-represented students in important, high-impact research projects also stands to enrich the overall value and impact of research in Criminology and Criminal Justice.

The C3JD REU Program provides students from traditionally under-represented backgrounds with a unique opportunity to develop their conceptual understanding of research and their practical understanding of how to conduct research through a variety of methodologies. Students receive access to meaningful forms of mentorship that help them understand the social world of academia and consequently establish a greater understanding of the professional and/or academic pathways that they will embark on.

The C3JD REU Program: 1) recruits a diverse pool of underrepresented undergraduate students; 2) provides students significant mentorship from faculty; 3) develops students’ understanding of the research process; 4) provides students with guidance on the various mechanisms and pathways involved in the dissemination of research findings; and 5) prepares students for entrance into competitive graduate programs. Students who complete the C3JD REU Program and strengthen their understanding of research and evidence-based practices have developed a skillset that makes them well prepared to embark on the next stage of their careers

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.