[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 64 (Thursday, April 30, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E624-E625]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING JOHN JAY COLLEGE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE ON ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JERROLD NADLER

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 30, 2015

  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate John Jay 
College of Criminal Justice in my district in New York City, on the 
occasion of its 50th anniversary.
  Located steps from Lincoln Center 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. This theme is at the core of each of its programs across arts, 
sciences, and humanities. 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% first generation 
students and more than 500 veterans. John Jay College is ranked #3 in 
the nation as a ``Best for Vet'' institution by Military Times in its 
2015 national college rankings of 600 universities and colleges.
  The original catalyst for the school came from increasing concerns 
among civic leaders in New York over ongoing relations between the 
police and the community and the increasing complexity of police work. 
A small and

[[Page E625]]

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, of course, was the first Chief Justice of the United States 
Supreme Court and served as governor of our New York.
  The challenges and hard work envisioned when John Jay College was 
created continue today. John Jay College is a critical part of our 
community. The essence 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.
  The accolades are many:
  Just a few weeks ago, 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.
  The National Network for Safe Communities at John Jay College, led by 
Professor David Kennedy, supports strategic interventions to reduce 
violence and community disorder. These strategies combine the best of 
law enforcement and community-driven approaches to improve public 
safety, minimize arrests and incarceration, enhance police legitimacy, 
and rebuild relationships between law enforcement and distressed 
communities. Attorney General Holder just announced six host pilot 
sites in Birmingham, AL; Fort Worth, TX; Gary, IN; Minneapolis, MN; 
Pittsburgh, PA; and Stockton, CA for the National Initiative for 
Building Community Trust and Justice, a three-year multi-million dollar 
project under the leadership of the National Network and John Jay. As 
part of a larger effort, each pilot site will assess the police-
community relationship and develop a detailed site-specific plan that 
will enhance procedural justice, reduce bias, and support 
reconciliation in communities where trust has been harmed.
  John Jay College was called on to provide expert advice and testimony 
to President Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing, including 
expert testimony from President Jeremy Travis, Professor Delores Jones-
Brown and Professor David Kennedy.
  September 11, 2001 had a profound impact on the campus and served as 
a catalyst to honor the 67 students, faculty and alumni that lost their 
lives that day. John Jay established a variety of initiatives, 
programs, research centers, and 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 four year college in the 
northeastern United States, and it has ranked #1 in the nation in 
awarding bachelor's degrees in protective services, #3 in psychology 
degrees, and #7 in public administration. John Jay's undergraduate, 
graduate and doctoral forensic degree programs are tops in the country. 
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 Marshall 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 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 U.S. 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 recently was named one of 
the top ten colleges where students graduate with the least debt. Only 
20% 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 #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.

                          ____________________