[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 63 (Wednesday, April 29, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2524-S2525]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            RECOGNIZING JOHN JAY COLLEGE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE

 Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate John 
Jay College of Criminal Justice on the occasion of their 50th 
anniversary.
  Located in the cultural heart of New York City, John Jay College is 
one of the Nation's leading liberal arts institutions of higher 
education with a mission of ``educating for justice.'' For 50 years, 
John Jay College has produced leaders, scholars, and heroes in 
policing, including forensic science, law, fire and emergency 
management, social work, teaching, private security, forensic 
psychology, and corrections. As an international leader in educating 
for justice, John Jay offers a rich liberal arts and professional 
studies curriculum to upwards of 15,000 undergraduate and graduate 
students from more than 135 nations, including over 47 percent first-
generation students and more than 500 veterans. John Jay College is 
ranked No. 3 in the Nation as a ``Best for Vet'' institution by 
Military Times in their 2015 national college rankings of 600 
universities and colleges.
  In the 1960s, a small and dedicated group of academic visionaries 
came together to develop a plan for a new college named the College of 
Police Science within the City University of New York. Within a year, 
the college was renamed the John Jay College of Criminal Justice to 
reflect broader aspirations and achievements in criminal justice, 
leadership, and public service. John Jay was the first Chief Justice of 
the United States Supreme Court and served as Governor of our great 
State of New York. The college opened in 1965 with 1,000 students and 
one major.
  The challenges and hard work envisioned when John Jay College was 
created continue today. John Jay College is a critical part of New 
York. The spirit of John Jay College of Criminal Justice can be found 
in its students, Pulitzer Prize-winning faculty, and enthusiastic 
administrators who form a, civic-minded community of motivated and 
intellectually curious individuals committed to public service and 
global citizenship.
  For example, earlier this year, the National Ethnic Coalition of 
Organizations, NECO, established a scholarship at John Jay College in 
memory of New York City Police Department Detectives Rafael Ramos and 
Wenjian Liu, who lost their lives in December 2014 while serving the 
citizens of New York. The scholarship was announced on March 11 during 
the college's NYPD alumni reception held in celebration of the 
longstanding partnership and collaboration with the NYPD. Of course, 
September 11, 2001 had a profound impact on the campus and served as a 
catalyst to honor the 67 students, faculty, and alumni who lost their 
lives that day. John Jay established a variety of initiatives, 
programs, research centers, scholarships, including the creation of the 
Center on Terrorism to study global terrorism and the Christian 
Regenhard Center for Emergency Response Studies, named after a 
probationary firefighter killed at the World Trade Center. As one of 
the leading institutions in the country in the field of criminal 
justice and public safety, John Jay College is one of the few 
institutions to offer M.A. students a certificate in the critical study 
of terrorism.
  John Jay College's commitment to diversity is shown by the fact that 
it has the highest Hispanic enrollment of any 4-year college in the 
Northeastern United States, and it has ranked No. 1 in the Nation in 
awarding bachelor's degree in protective services, No. 3 in psychology 
degrees, and No. 7 in public administration. John Jay's undergraduate, 
graduate and doctoral forensic degree programs are top ranking. The 
College's Master of Public Administration programs recently received 
the Diversity and Social Equity Awards by the Network of Schools of 
Public Policy, Affairs and Administration. The nationally recognized 
Program for Research Initiatives in Science and Math, PRISM, at John 
Jay College engages underrepresented students in careers in science and 
math by providing an opportunity for them to participate in faculty-
mentored scientific research in areas like molecular biology, 
toxicology, criminalistics and computer science, and partake in 
professional research conferences while completing their degree. Since 
its inception, graduation numbers from the College's science majors 
have tripled, and the number of students, and especially 
underrepresented minority students, moving on to doctoral and medical 
degrees has grown five-fold.
  John Jay's faculty personify excellence--they include Pulitzer Prize 
winners, Presidential scholars, recipients of prestigious book awards, 
presidents of leading professional organizations, and editors of 
prominent scholarly journals. They have been recognized by their peers 
and even by the White House for their dedication to teaching, research, 
and mentoring. The college's students regularly win prestigious 
scholarships, including the Marshal Scholarship, internships, including 
the White House Internship, and fellowships, including Fulbright, JK 
Watson and the National Science Foundation Graduate Research 
Fellowship. They are also accepted to high-profile graduate and 
professional schools. Their alumni number more than 54,000, many

[[Page S2525]]

of whom hold leadership roles in public sector agencies, including the 
United States Marshals Service, the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection 
Service, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National 
Parks Service, the State Department, Peace Corps, the United Nations, 
and private companies in the United States and worldwide.
  Affordability is an essential component of the college's core 
mission. At a time when over 37 million Americans are saddled with over 
$1 trillion in student debt, John Jay College was recently named one of 
the top 10 colleges where students graduate with the least debt. Only 
20 percent of John Jay students were compelled to borrow money to 
finance their college education, less than one-third of the national 
average. And the vast majority of John Jay students graduate debt-
free--enabling them to become successful in service for others without 
having to spend years paying off their student loans. In fact John Jay 
College was recently ranked No. 4 in the ``Best Bang for the Buck'' in 
the Northeast rankings in Washington Monthly's College guide.
  John Jay develops fierce advocates for justice--each committed every 
day to building a better democracy. I am proud to represent John Jay 
College of Criminal Justice and the values that it stands for and works 
for every day. Congratulations to John Jay College on this very 
important day and its 50-year record of fighting for justice.

                          ____________________