The Office of Justice Programs and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) in particular, have made a major commitment to advancing Evidence-Based Practice (EBP). BJA has accelerated the adoption and integration of research and evidence in the field by growing the number of BJA programs that require robust researcher-practitioner partnerships. BJA is promoting researcher-practitioner partnerships in order to implement data-driven approaches to reduce crime, improve community safety, reduce recidivism, and prevent unnecessary confinement.
The last two decades have witnessed increasing commitment from local to federal levels for the development of research capacity in local, state, federal, and Tribal criminal justice agencies. Such efforts are intended to encourage strategic problem solving and the integration of evidence-based strategies into practice for more effective, efficient, and economical criminal justice operations. One of the key benefits of the integration of research into criminal justice practice is that such analytical skills and processes support the development of highly focused interventions that have been shown to be the most effective in terms of crime prevention and control.
The Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), has made a major commitment to bring more "science" into criminal justice operations by leveraging innovative applications of analysis, technology, and evidence-based practices with the goal of improving performance and effectiveness while containing costs. BJA has accelerated the adoption and integration of research and evidence in the field by growing the number of BJA programs that encourage robust researcher-practitioner partnerships in order to implement data-driven approaches to reduce violent crime, improve community safety, reduce recidivism, and enhance the efficiency, fairness, and effectiveness of the criminal justice system. To support and enhance the effectiveness of these Smart Suite programs, BJA has partnered with a team of training and technical assistance experts led by the Michigan State University, School of Criminal Justice
BJA supported the Team by providing funding and guidance with development of a Fellows Academy. The Fellows Academy builds on MSU’s experience with PSN and similar data-driven initiatives as well as the Violent Crime Reduction Workshop that was originally developed for newly funded PSN sites.
The Academy’s primary goal is to help researchers and practitioners work more effectively and efficiently on crime reduction strategies. The Smart Suite Researcher-Practitioner Fellows Academy (formerly known as the “Innovations Suite”) is a multi-day experience focusing on the importance of using science and data to: (a) support criminal justice planning and programming; (b) develop capacity to translate research into practice; (c) support the implementation of evidence-based practice; and (d) enhance public safety and improve the delivery of fair and cost-effective justice.
The Academy perpetuates a “community of practice” and develops “Fellows,” by providing training in action research, linkage to proven processes and strategies, and supporting the partnerships post Academy through ongoing training and technical assistance (TTA). TTA includes a resource and communication network for continuous learning, support, sharing, and building capacity for identifying and responding to emerging and chronic crime problems, analysis of these problems, linking strategies to research-based practice, and developing a culture of experimentation to further develop and sustain evidence-based practices. After 9 Academies, there are now over 650 Fellows!
The first Fellows Academy was held on July 28-31, 2015 in East Lansing, MI, with a focus on research partners only. The second, expanded, four-person team, Academy was held on February 2-5, 2016 in Washington, DC.
- Fellows Academy #3: July 19-22, 2016 in East Lansing, MI
- Fellows Academy #4: February 7-10, 2017 in Denver, CO
- Fellows Academy #5: July 25-28, 2017 in Lansing, MI
- Fellows Academy #6: February 27- March 2, 2018 in Chicago, IL
- Fellows Academy #7: July 31- August 3, 2018 in Denver, CO
- Fellows Academy #8: April 23-26, 2019 in Denver, CO
- Fellows Academy #9: July 30- August 2, 2019 in Denver, CO
- Fellows Academy #10: March 23-26, 2021 (Virtually)