Events

The 2024 Headlines series kicks off with a discussion about the research and data activities within the National Institute of Justice and Bureau of Justice Statistics.

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Presenters

Dr. Nancy La Vigne, Director, National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, DOJ

Nancy La Vigne was appointed by President Biden as Director of the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) in March 2022. Dr. La Vigne’s research expertise ranges from policing and corrections reform to reentry from prison, criminal justice technologies and evidence-based criminal justice practices. Prior to joining NIJ, she served as executive director of the Council on Criminal Justice’s Task Force on Policing. Before that, La Vigne served as vice president at the Urban Institute (Urban), a nonprofit social policy research organization based in Washington, D.C., where over the course of a decade, she directed Urban’s Justice Policy Center. Dr. La Vigne is not new to NIJ, having been the founding director of the Institute’s Crime Mapping Research Center several years ago, as well as serving as special assistant to Office of Justice Program’s Acting Assistant Attorney General. She holds a Ph.D. in criminal justice from Rutgers University, a master’s degree in public affairs from the LBJ School at the University of Texas-Austin and a bachelor’s degree in government and economics from Smith College.

Dr. Kevin Scott, Acting Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, DOJ

Dr. Kevin Scott is acting director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), the primary statistical agency of the Department of Justice responsible for collecting, analyzing, and disseminating statistics on crime, individuals who commit crimes, victims of crime, and the operation of justice systems at all levels of government. Dr. Scott has been with BJS since 2017 in a variety of leadership roles. Prior to joining BJS, Dr. Scott worked for the Congressional Research Service, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, and as the Director of the Policy Analysis Unit in the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Policy. Kevin earned his PhD in Political Science at The Ohio State University.

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Watch for additional webinar announcements on the COSSA website.