DoctorJessica Peterson

My core research areas include rural crime and justice, policing and discretionary decision-making. Using primarily qualitative methods, much of my work involves interviews, fieldwork, and surveys with community members and criminal justice practitioners. In my research, I aim to help bridge the gap between practice and research, and engage in collaborative interdisciplinary projects that have real-world application and impact.

As a scholar-teacher, I consistently integrate both my own research and the expertise of global scholars and practitioners into my courses. I have extensive experience developing and refining higher education curriculum at the departmental, University, and professional levels. For example, I have authored and edited open-access teaching materials and textbooks in the topics of criminal justice systems and criminology, race and crime, and rural criminology.

Although an early career scholar, I have already achieved recognition for excellence across teaching, research, and service. My contributions and passion for teaching have been recognized with awards including the student-nominated “Going Above and Beyond” Teaching Award, the Early Career Award from the American Society of Criminology’s Division of Rural Criminology - which acknowledged my excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service - and the Joseph F. Donnermeyer Early Scholar Award from the International Society for the Study of Rural Crime.

I am active in many professional organizations and regularly participate in academic conferences including:

• American Society of Criminology and the Division of Rural Criminology (past Chair)
• The International Society for the Study of Rural Crime (past President)
• The Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences