NIJ’s Center for Enhancing Research Capacity for MSIs at John Jay College

Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) are vital to the diversification of higher education, enrolling approximately 39% of undergraduate students of color. These institutions, however, confront significant financial disparities, especially in revenue generation and research and development (R&D) funding. This funding gap impairs their ability to expand academic programs, upgrade facilities, and foster scholarly research, particularly in the domain of Criminal Justice. The disproportionate allocation of federal R&D funds further curtails MSIs' innovation potential and capacity for scholarly contributions in areas crucial for societal progress.

The NIJ Center for Enhancing Research Capacity at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (NIJ-CERC-MSIs-JJC) is designed to address these challenges by bolstering the research infrastructure and capabilities of MSIs within Criminal Justice. The center's mission is threefold: to increase MSIs' competitiveness in research, to support the growth of research funding for MSI investigators, and to broaden the community of MSI researchers engaged in addressing criminal and juvenile justice issues.

Grounded in the structural empowerment and critical mass framework (Manyibe et al., 2017), the program will accomplish these goals via three targeted initiatives. The InnovaMSI initiative, as part of this approach, will conduct a comprehensive appraisal of MSIs' research infrastructures and strategically reinforce their research faculties. This initiative prioritizes the identification of infrastructural gaps and the development of customized solutions to enhance MSIs' research capabilities, thereby improving their competitiveness in securing grants and producing high-caliber research.

Research Nexus seeks to cultivate a collaborative ecosystem by linking nascent MSI researchers with established subject-matter experts. This collaboration aims to engender high-impact research through shared knowledge, resources, and mentorship, thus accelerating the research trajectory of MSI scholars within the justice arena. The Propel Initiative, the third pillar, is tailored to provide immersive training programs, mentorship, and seed funding. Its objective is to prepare MSI researchers to successfully navigate the competitive landscape of external grant acquisition and to adeptly manage the funding they receive, thereby bolstering the sustainability of their research endeavors.

Collectively, these initiatives aim contribute to the transformation of MSIs into hubs of excellence and innovation, ensuring their critical role in producing diverse, scholarly work that influences policy and practice within the U.S. justice system. It aims to not only address the immediate funding and infrastructure gaps but also to catalyze long-term, systemic change in the research landscape of MSIs. CA/NCF