33rd Annual Reckless Dinitz Lecture

The CJRC is pleased to announce that the speaker for this year's 33rd Annual Reckless-Dinitz Lecture is Dr. Robin Engel.  Dr. Engel serves as Senior Advisor for 21st Century Policing Solutions (21CP) following over 25 years in academic positions at the University of Cincinnati and the Pennsylvania State University. She has spent her career generating and testing evidence-based police practices, transforming police agencies through reform efforts, and reducing crime and violence in our most vulnerable communities. Her doctorate in criminal justice was awarded from the Rockefeller College of Public Policy at the University at Albany, State University of New York in 1999. As an award-winning researcher, she has partnered with dozens of police agencies and communities in the US and internationally, served as Principal Investigator for over 100 funded research studies and projects totaling over $32M in external funding, and ranked among the top academics nationally in criminal justice/criminology based on publications in prestigious peer-reviewed journals. From 2015 – 2019, she served as Vice President for Safety and Reform at the University of Cincinnati, where her executive duties included oversight of daily operations and successful implementation of comprehensive police reforms in the aftermath of a fatal police shooting of an unarmed motorist. She also recently served as Senior Vice President at the National Policing Institute, guiding the Institute’s scientific investments designed to translate and integrate research into practice. Dr. Engel’s work in violence reduction partnerships has been honored with the 2008 IACP/Motorola Webber Seavey Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement, the 2009 IACP/West Award for Excellence in Criminal Investigations, and the 2008 National Criminal Justice Association’s Outstanding Criminal Justice Program Award. She received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University at Albany in 2017, and the 2022 O.W. Wilson Award from the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. Dr. Engel also served as a four-time governor-appointed member of the Ohio Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board, former Co-chair of the International Association of Chiefs of Police’s Research Advisory Committee, and consultant on police training for the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. As a top scholar and trusted leading authority in police science, Dr. Engel continues to engage in research designed to make police-citizen encounters safer, reduce harm, and promote best practices through academic-practitioner partnerships.

Abstract

At the Intersection of Police Reform Efforts and Evidence-Based Policing Practices: Perspectives from Academia and the Field
 

What happens when a career academic turns into a police executive overnight? In this serious – and sometimes surreal – account of what happens when a researcher “goes native” to handle the aftermath of a critical incident, lessons will be shared about the realities of modern police reform, community engagement, race, politics, media, and research. Importantly, discussion will focus on what works in police reform. While some proposed reforms are effective, others lack evidence or have unintended consequences. As the field moves to embrace evidence-based policing practices, will there be a clash with reform efforts focused on reducing racial/ethnic disparities? Despite widespread implementation of voluntary and mandated police reforms, the profession continues to struggle with lack of community trust, rising or persistent levels of crime and violence, controversial use of force and critical incidents, challenges with officer recruitment, hiring, retention, and morale, and growing concerns about officer safety and wellness. Successfully navigating the delicate balance facing police executives to be attentive to public and political demands for reform, while also embracing evidence-based approaches to improve policing and reduce crime and violence, will require collaboration with researchers across disciplines. Recommendations regarding how academics can serve as partners to police agencies and communities to make their research more relevant and impactful will be discussed.