In recent decades there has been substantial change in both the prevalence of crime in the United States and the dominant policy approaches designed to control it.  Increasing attention has been directed to the need for science-based policy to manage both crime and the response to it in the most effective and fiscally sustainable manner possible.  The MPP concentration in Law, Crime and Policy trains new professionals to integrate the latest scientific information from the fields of law, criminology and justice to affect public discussion and policy related to crime and its control.

This new concentration includes internships, coursework and research in applied settings in law and crime policy, including an opportunity to participate in the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program at the Oregon State Penitentiary.

The Law, Crime and Policy Concentration Advisor is Professor Scott Akins.

Law, Crime and Policy Faculty available for MPP student committees. 

A new course entitled “Law, Crime and Policy” (SOC 549; 4 credits) serves as the linchpin of the concentration.  This course provides an introduction to the substantive and theoretical issues housed under the rubrics of law and crime policy.  This course is required for all MPP students in the concentration.

The other 12 credits would be electives from the following list of courses:

  • Econ 535: Public Economics [4 credits]
  • Econ 561 - Law, Economics, and Regulation [4 credits]
  • PS 562 - Theories of Law [4 credits]
  • SOC 540 - Juvenile Delinquency [4 credits]
  • SOC 541 - Criminology and Penology [4 credits]
  • SOC 542 - Sociology of Drug Use and Abuse [4 credits]
  • SOC 544 - Inside-Out: Prisons, Communities, and Prevention [4 credits]
  • SOC 548 - Law and Society [4 credits]