NCJ Number
198751
Journal
Justice Quarterly Volume: 19 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2002 Pages: 589-601
Date Published
December 2002
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This article reviews criminal justice programs and curricula for the period 1999 to 2000 focusing on regional programming differences.
Abstract
After discussing the ways in which the Presidents of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) have argued that criminal justice is an academic discipline, the author contends that criminal justice programs need to be consistently evaluated and reviewed at both the national and regional levels. Following a discussion of significant increases in the numbers of criminal justice programs over the past decade, the author presents the trends in criminal justice programs highlighting gains made in the average number of required criminal justice courses, the range of criminal justice courses leading to a well-rounded baccalaureate education, and the diminishing role of traditional supporting disciplines in many criminal justice programs. Examining the consensus on criminal justice programs’ curriculums, this article reports that there is no more consensus in 1999 to 2000 than was present in 1989 to 1999, although much progress has been made in the area of requiring courses on research methods, ethics, policing, and juvenile justice. Focusing on the areas in which criminal justice programs’ curricula should focus their future attentions, the author suggests that the ACJS implement a process of academic accreditation. Tables, references