The mission of St. Francis College to provide a high quality private college education at affordable tuition continues to earn attention and accolades as Forbes names St. Francis to its newly revealed list of America's Best Value Colleges.
Sociology and Criminal Justice
Pursue careers in social service, social work, law enforcement, parole, probation, and non-profit organizational service and management.
Overview
Johnathan Fleming spent more than 20 years behind bars for a murder he didn't commit. Rob Rahn '76, a St. Francis graduate, helped free him. Both came to St. Francis College to tell students about the experience.
Sociology and Criminal Justice come to life every day at the College. You'll meet the people who work in these fields; people who are making a difference in people's lives.
Our goal is for students to enter the workforce prepared to solve social problems such as addressing homelessness, helping crime victims find needed services, prosecuting criminals, defending clients in a court of law, fighting injustices, and creating meaningful public policy. Graduates from our program are prepared to attend law school as well as pursue graduate work in sociology, criminal justice, criminology, and psychology.Graduates from our program are prepared to attend law school as well as pursue graduate work in sociology, criminal justice, criminology, and psychology.
Faculty
Our faculty members conduct research in a range of areas within the disciplines of sociology and criminology including crime and popular culture, wrongful convictions, post-prison education, crime and media, and public school education in New York City. Their works have been published in their field and they frequently appear as experts on various media.
Students can work as research assistants and gain valuable for-credit internships at social service and criminal justice agencies, including:
- Victim service organizations,
- Non-profit criminal justice and social service think tanks,
- Senior centers,
- Child care centers,
- NYC Department of Buildings
- Hospitals,
- Federal and state probation and parole agencies,
- State and federal policing agencies,
- District Attorneys and law offices.
A Sampling of Recently Introduced Courses:
- Wrongful Convictions
- Prisons and Prisoners in America
- Problems of Urban Law Enforcement
- Media, Crime, and Criminal Justice
- Victimology
- Cultural Criminology
- Crime, Justice, and American Fiction
- Sex Crimes and American Justice
- Post-War Social Movements
Courses & Program Info
Mission
The mission of the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice is to provide our students with the knowledge, confidence and motivation to think deeply about social issues in modern society. We seek to instill an intellectual curiosity in our students for lifelong learning and an appreciation for objectivity, application of the scientific method, and critical thinking. We intend for our students to become tolerant and open-minded individuals who are prepared intellectually and substantively for the modern workforce as well as further graduate and professional study. Our students will leave the department ready to purse constructive careers in the social services of criminal justice, social work and sociology.
Faculty
Emily Horowitz
Professor, Sociology & Criminal Justice, Director, Institute for Peace & Justice
Sociology & Criminal Justice
School:
718.489.5446
Jaskiran Mathur
Associate Professor of Sociology, Director Professional Studies
Sociology & Criminal Justice, Honors, Professional Studies
School:
718.489.5476
Nickie Phillips
Associate Professor
Sociology & Criminal Justice, American Studies
School:
718.489.3431
News & Events
News
Read more
about Forbes Names SFC To America's Best Value Colleges List
Comic books and graphic novels offer a unique medium to explore the intersection between law and justice, two ideas that often sit in opposition to each other. On October 20, 2018, St. Francis College will host the Graphic Justice Research Alliance (GJRA) Annual Conference to explore this connection
They come from New York City and around the world; St. Francis College students and faculty who work together for the common goal of improving themselves and the world around them.
In a deeply personal address with anecdotes about his family and an exploration of the mission of college education in the modern day, St. Francis College President Miguel Martinez-Saenz laid out an ambitious plan setting the College on a path of growth and transformation.
Saying that the people most afraid of crime are those least likely to become victims, Professor Murray Lee, of the University of Sydney Law School tried to explain this paradox, why we fear crime and how that affects are daily routines.
The story of this escalating tax fight between Brooklyn and the government will be told by author Sarah Lohman in the first lecture of the Spring 2018 Senior Citizen Lecture Series, "From New Nation to World Power: Culture, Politics, and Society in the United States, 1789-1896."
Upcoming Events
Institutes & Centers
The Sociology & Criminal Justice Department houses three centers:
- Center for Crime and Popular Culture
- Post Prison College Opportunities Program @ St. Francis College
- Institute for Peace and Justice
These centers offer students the opportunity to hear lectures by experts in the fields of criminal justice and sociology including personal testimonies by those who have been wrongfully convicted such as Fernando Bermudez, film screenings featuring Q&A’s with directors/actors/producers such as the Compliance screening, book authors that discuss their recent research, world-renowned professionals working in criminal justice and security such as Gavin de Becker, and activists such as Jennifer Baumgardner who are dedicated to fighting for social justice. We also have frequent guest speakers, events, film screenings, and seminars.
Goals & Objectives
Sociology
- Students will develop and apply the “sociological imagination” to the study of the social world.
- Students will utilize qualitative and quantitative sociological methods in the pursuit of social research.
- Student will gain familiarity with social theory and the history of sociological thought.
- Students will be able to apply social theory and sociological concepts to the study of social problems.
- Students will be able to critique how race, ethnicity, sex, and gender relate to life chances in diverse societies.
- Students will develop and master the ability to understand and apply major sociological concepts and theories to complex contemporary social phenomena.
- Students will develop and master the ability to access, comprehend and synthesize sociological scholarship in order to assess others' work and for use in their own work.
Learn about Courses and Program Requirements in the Course Catalogue
Criminal Justice
- Students will understand key components of criminal justice system in the United States.
- Students will critically analyze key criminological theories.
- Students will contrast qualitative and quantitative methods as they are used in criminal justice research.
- Students will explain the role of race, ethnicity, and class in criminal justice outcomes.
Learn about Courses and Program Requirements in the Course Catalogue