Profiles in Honors - Human and Community Sciences
Matthew C. Leone
I think the honors program is an untapped resource. I came to the University in 1990 and have been sharing pizza and lectures on criminal justice with students participating in the honors program since 1999. During that time, I have had many opportunities to interact with some very sharp and inquisitive students. Most have very little experience with the subject of criminal justice, yet many will probably run into some aspect of it along the course of their lives whether they choose to become judges, attorneys, law enforcement officers, or serve on a jury.
I have given bright minds exposure to aspects of criminal justice they probably would have never gained knowledge of during their regular course of school work. I mentor students to help them get into graduate or law school. This includes helping students with their research, especially in the area of data analysis and assisting with paper organization.
I have also mentored several students who are Ph.D. holding faculty members at major research institutions around the country, and many more that are lawyers, judges, law enforcement officers, and administrators within the field of criminal justice.
My experiences with the University and the honors program have been very positive. I have had many opportunities to interact with some very sharp and inquisitive students.
The greatest honor my students can pay to me and this institution is to want to become a professor and mentor, in the same manner in which they were mentored. They are the next generation of criminal justice professionals.
I think our honors program is underutilized. More students should really participate because of the rewards. The honors experience can boost one’s college experience into the next level. It is more work, but worth the experience and lifetime benefits.
After earning my Ph.D at the University of California, Irvine, I am now a corrections specialist with published work on medical criminology. My specialty is social, economic, and organizational correlates of jail crowding. Now, I love to share my knowledge with University honors students.
