ASC Division Histories
Division of BioPsychoSocial Criminology
The Division of Biopsychosocial Criminology had its origins in a workshop held at ASC’s Annual Meeting at the Hilton Riverside Hotel on Wednesday November 16th from 11 am to 12.20 pm. It was attended by 36 individuals, and after a lively discussion there was strong enthusiasm for moving forward with the creation of this division.
On April 10, 2017, Adrian Raine and David Farrington petitioned Members of the ASC Executive Board for the creation of the Division on behalf of members who had signed a petition for its creation. The ASC Executive Board met in the Downtown Marriott Hotel in Philadelphia and approved the petition on Friday April 28, 2017, with Biopsychosocial Criminology becoming the 13th Division created by ASC.
The first announcement of the Division’s creation was made to ASC Division Heads on May 1, 2017.
Division of Communities and Place
Barbara Warner led the effort to form the Division of Communities and Place. An organizational meeting was held and signatures were collected in support of the new division during the 2016 meeting in New Orleans, LA. A Resolution for the Establishment of Divisions within ASC was approved by the Board in April 2017. The Division held its first Executive Board and Membership meetings in Philadelphia, PA in 2017.
The mission of the Division of Communities and Place is to support the development of theory, research, and policy regarding the effects of both community context (such as social structure, culture, and social processes) and place (such as the built, social, cultural and physical environment) on crime rates, hot spots, and crime control. The Division is grounded in the historical fact that crime varies by place, and seeks to develop the best methods and strategies for understanding and addressing the causes and consequences of crime within communities and at specific geographic locations.
To achieve its mission, the division seeks to foster and promote research and enhance communication and partnerships among scholars, students, practitioners, policy makers and community members.
Division of Experimental Criminology
The Division of Experimental Criminology (DEC) was established formally by the Executive Board of the American Society of Criminology in April 2009. Through its work, the Division seeks to advance the development of experimental scholarship within all subject areas, as well as promote the use of evidence-based crime policy. The Academy of Experimental Criminology (AEC) was founded in 1998 by efforts led by Lawrence Sherman and other experimental criminologists.1 The formation of the DEC was first initiated by leaders within the Academy of Experimental Criminology (AEC) to promote engagement in experimental criminology in ASC, especially among graduate students and younger scholars.
Since its formation, the DEC has worked to advance applied and field research methods, as well as to increase the visibility of experimental and non-experimental evidence. Today DEC remains the only Division focused on a particular set of methodological approaches, as opposed to a substantive area of research. The DEC seeks to achieve its goals in multiple ways including: a) a series of activities during the ASC annual meetings and throughout the year, b) posts to social media and the website, c) a newsletter, and as of 2018, d) a mentoring program. The Journal of Experimental Criminology (JoEX), a top-tier academic journal focused on publishing high-quality experimental and quasi-experimental scholarship, is the official journal of the DEC. Additionally, DEC recognizes outstanding achievements in experimental criminology through the Jerry Lee Lifetime Achievement Award, the Award for Outstanding Experimental Field Trial, and the Student Paper Award. AEC similarly recognizes experimentalists through the Joan McCord Award and the Outstanding Young Experimental Criminologist Award.
The DEC and the AEC, though independent entities, continue to work closely together to advance shared goals. The AEC today primarily serves to recognize scholars who have successfully led randomized controlled field experiments in criminology through their election as Fellows. Fellows are elected annually by a vote of the entire Fellowship upon nomination by any Fellow and are installed at the annual meeting held in conjunction with the DEC events at the ASC annual meeting. In 2012, recognizing the value and efficiency of a shared governance, DEC Chair David Weisburd and the AEC President Anthony Braga initiated a Memorandum of Understanding formalizing the close relationship between the AEC and the DEC.
Division of International Criminology
The ASC Board approved the creation of the Division of International Criminology at its Board Meeting on November 10, 1981. The DIC formally came into existence as of Noon on Thursday, November 12, 1981 when the DIC held its first meeting in the Pan American room of the Capital Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Division of Policing
In 1941 former Berkeley Chief of Police August Vollmer, UC Berkeley professor of police administration O.W. Wilson, and others gathered to form what is now known as the American Society of Criminology. Originally created “for the purpose of furthering college police training and standardizing police training curricula” the ASC blossomed into the diverse organization it is today, spanning every aspect of criminology and criminal justice research and practice, where numerous divisions have flourished. Policing scholarship and outreach has been an important and significant part of the Society and its annual meetings ever since.
Long overdue, in November 2013, a group of policing scholars and practitioners of the ASC convened to discuss and plan for the petitioning and development of the Division of Policing (see the names of this group at https://ascpolicing.org/special-thanks/). The ASC Board approved the creation of the Division of Policing at its Board Meeting on May 3, 2014.
The Division of Policing’s mission is to advance theory, knowledge and practice in policing through rigorous research and evaluation. The Division recognizes the fundamental importance of the police for maintaining order, protecting civil liberties, and enhancing public safety in free societies. It is committed to advancing the science of policing, testing innovation in the field, and promoting excellence in practice through translational activities. These goals can be achieved by facilitating a dialogue and building partnerships among policing scholars, practitioners, policy makers, community leaders, and students of policing.
Division of Victimology
Originally conceptualized by founders Dr. Bonnie S. Fisher and Dr. Robert Jerin in 2012, the Division of Victimology (DOV) was created to bring together Victimologists, and those whose research and/or daily work focuses on victimization, in an effort to help the field of victimology to continue to evolve and to bring continued attention to the of issue of victimization. During the first DOV meeting at the 2012 American Society of Criminology (ASC) conference in Chicago, Bonnie and Bob were overwhelmed by the turnout of new members, as over 50 people crowded into a room intended to hold less than two dozen. The DOV continued to quickly grow, with dozens of new members joining each year. Today, the DOV has become a well-established division within ASC, boasting over 200 members from countries around the world.
The mission of the Division of Victimology is to promote the professional growth and development of its members through scholarship, pedagogy, and practices associated with the field of Victimology. The Division of Victimology strives to ensure that its members will 1) contribute to the evolution of the Victimology discipline by supporting and disseminating cutting edge research, 2) develop and share pedagogical resources, 3) support professional enhancement workshops and activities, 4) embrace the development of evidence-informed programs and services, 5) advance victims’ rights, and 6) encourage the advancement of the intersection of scholarship and practices.
Division of White Collar and Corporate Crime
The establishment of the Division of White Collar and Corporate Crime (DWCC) is rooted in the White Collar Crime Research Consortium (WCCRC), an organization that developed under the sponsorship of the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C). The NW3C is the only federal entity with the term “white collar crime” as part of its name. It has focused on promoting attention to and providing resources in response to some forms of white collar crime, especially crimes that victimized corporations, but has focused less attention on white-collar crimes committed by corporations and professionals. The WCCRC established annual awards in 2008 for publications and other achievements, with the Lifetime Achievement Award being renamed the Gilbert Geis Lifetime Achievement Award following the presentation of the first award to Gil Geis.
Over the years a number of Consortium members began to discuss the possibility of establishing a division of white collar crime within the American Society of Criminology. Henry Pontell and Mike Levi were among the key people in pursuing this initiative. The Division of White-Collar and Corporate Crime was formally approved by ASC in 2016 and came into being in 2017, with Kristy Holtfreter serving as the first chair, and Michael L. Benson as the second chair, of the division. Perhaps the most noteworthy accomplishment of the division, to date, has been the establishment of a new journal, Journal of White-Collar and Corporate Crime, with Gregg Barak playing the key role in this initiative, which formally came into being in 2019. Barak and Anne Alvesalo-Kuusi are the inaugural co-editors of this new journal, which will be published by Sage Publications.
Division on Corrections and Sentencing
The DCS was established in November 1999 as a constituent unit of the American Society of Criminology. The Division for Corrections and Sentencing brings together scholars, practitioners, students, and policy-makers to facilitate and encourage research pertaining to sentencing, rehabilitation, punishment, community and institutional corrections, diversionary programs and alternatives. The DCS is governed by an Executive Board consisting of a Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary/Treasurer and three Executive Counselors. Doris MacKenzie was the first president of the division.
Division on Critical Criminology and Social Justice
The inspiration for creating a division of critical criminology came from a meeting of the progressive caucus held in November 1988 at the American Society of Criminology’s annual conference. It arose out of a historical denial of critical criminology in academia and a collective desire to share work and struggles, and to network together. It aimed to provide a framework to encourage dialogue among critical, radical and progressive criminologists. In the subsequent two years a constitution was developed, officers were elected and its formal recognition as a Division was granted by the American Society of Criminology in 1990. The Division’s first chair was Susan Caringella. A newsletter, The Critical Criminologist, was established, which continues to be disseminated on a quarterly basis. Following a membership vote in 2016 it was decided to change the name to that of the Division of Critical Criminology and Social Justice to better reflect the division’s social justice ethos.
The Division is intended to facilitate work on political economic structures and their interrelationships with the ideological and social control mechanisms that dehumanize, alienate, exploit, marginalize and generally subordinate people(s). Specifically, critical criminology examines class, gender and race/ethnic biases and oppression in all of their ubiquitous forms. We not only critically examine what is, but also what might be, through placing a premium on developing insights into generating more humanistic social formations, institutions, interactions and forms of social justice. The Division provides a support network for those pursuing critical practice, scholarship and classroom pedagogy.
Division on People of Color and Crime
The Division on People of Color and Crime (DPCC) is a Division within the American Society of Criminology (ASC). The idea to create the new Division was conceived during a meeting with Black criminologists at the November 1994 ASC conference held in Miami, Florida. During the conference a petition was circulated collecting original signatures and addresses of at least three percent of ASC members who supported the proposed establishment of a “Division on People of Color and Crime.” On December 23, 1994, the petition was submitted to ASC headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. At the April 1995 midyear ASC Executive Board meeting, it was determined that the petition conformed to ASC requirements. On August 18, 1995, a revision of the Division Constitution was submitted to the ASC Board.
On November 14, 1995, the DPCC was approved by the ASC Executive Board at the ASC conference held in Boston, Massachusetts. The DPCC was established under the ASC presidential leadership and support of Freda Adler (Rutgers University). To support membership recruitment efforts, incoming ASC President Charles Wellford (University of Maryland) wrote the ASC membership a letter encouraging them to join the DPCC. Prior to the first elections, Julius Debro (University of Washington) and Ruth Peterson (Ohio State University) served as Co-Chairs of the Division Steering Committee. The first Division Officers were elected in November 1998; the Officers were: Chinita A. Heard, Chair; Evelyn Gilbert, Vice Chair; Becky Tatum, Secretary; and Jeanette Covington, Charles Crawford, and Darnell Hawkins, Executive Counselors.
Division on Terrorism and Bias Crimes
During the ASC meetings of 2013 in Atlanta, Gary LaFree first started thinking about a terrorism and bias crimes division for the ASC. LaFree talked about it with colleagues and friends and after kicking around the idea informally, contacted Chris Eskridge in April 2014 to reserve a room for an organizational meeting in San Francisco for the 2014 ASC meetings. Before the meeting, LaFree took Chris’s advice and had a long discussion with Cynthia Lum who provided the by-laws and constitution for the Policing Division—which we used as templates. To meet the requirements of the ASC by-laws, we developed petition sheets and sent them to individuals that we thought would likely be interested. Some of the people who helped us collect names were Laura Dugan, Joshua Freilich, Cynthia Lum, Sue-Ming Yang, Nancy Morris, Bo Jiang, James Forest, John Sawyer and Simon Perry. But there were others as well. We contacted as many people as we could that we thought might be interested in establishing such a division.
As the meeting in San Francisco approached, none of us knew exactly how many people would show up. When we arrived at the meeting we were pleasantly surprised to find that it was standing room only! We estimate as many as 150 people showed up. By then we had plenty of signatures to justify taking our petition for a new division to the ASC board. At this meeting we also established an interim committee to move forward on creating the division. The interim committee included Laura Dugan, James Forrest, Joshua Freilich, Gary LaFree, Carla Lewandowski, Cynthia Lum, and soon William Parkin who agreed to serve as the web-manager for the proposed division’s website. The ASC Board formally approved the DTBC at its Washington D.C. Board meeting in spring 2015. We then had a structure to hold elections and we were off to the races! The DTBC’s elections resulted in its first Executive Board and the first official DTBC ASC meeting occurred in Washington DC in 2015. Once again the meeting was standing room only!
A complete history of the Division on Terrorism & Bias Crimes can be found here: https://ascterrorism.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/History-DTBC-020519.pdf
Division on Women and Crime
A Resolution for the Establishment of Divisions within ASC was approved by the membership as of October 30, 1980. The ASC Board approved the creation of the Division on Women and Crime at its Board Meeting on November 14, 1981. The DWC formally came into existence as of 3:30 pm on Thursday, November 4, 1982 when the DWC held its first meeting in the Windsor East room of the Toronto Sheraton Hotel. At that meeting, a provisional Executive Board was appointed, with Dr. P.J. Baunach being named chair. The first elected Executive Board took office in 1984, which is the year the division recognizes as its true “founding.” The Division on Women and Crime celebrated its twentieth anniversary in 2004, and celebrated its thirtieth anniversary in 2014 in San Francisco. The full history and archives are available on the DWC website.
A Resolution for the Establishment of Divisions within ASC was approved by the membership as of October 30, 1980.
