Congratulations to the 2026 ACJS Academy Award Recipients!

Bruce Smith Sr. Award
Richard Bennett, American University

Academy Fellow Award
Brandon Applegate, University of South Carolina

Founders Award
Heather Pfeifer, University of Baltimore

Academy New Scholars Award
Kwan-Lamar Blount-Hill, Arizona State University

Outstanding Book Award
Michelle S. Phelps, University of Minnesota
      The Minneapolis Reckoning: Race, Violence, and the Politics of Policing in America

The Michael C. Braswell/Routledge Outstanding Dissertation Award
Pranjali Sathe, University of Cincinnati
    "Prisoners on the Move: Examining the Nature and Effects of Prison Transiency on Incarcerated Individuals”

Donal MacNamara Award
Darrell Steffensmeier, Pennsylvania State University
Jessie Slepicka, University of Montana
Jennifer Schwartz, University of Washington
Yunmei Lu, University at Buffalo
   Has Postponed Entry into Adult Roles Modified U.S. Age-Crime Curves? Age-Arrest Patterns of Teens, Emerging Adults and Adult Age   Groups, 1980–2019

The William L. Simon/Routledge Outstanding Paper Award
Sonja E. Siennick, Florida State University
Jillian J. Turanovic, University of Colorado Boulder
    “Examining the Uniqueness of School Weapons Offenses among Forms of Youth Offending”

Ken Peak Innovations in Teaching Award
Kenya Brumfield-Young, Saint Louis University
Wanda Leal, Sam Houston State University

Academy Leadership and Innovation Award
John Petulla, Harborcreek Youth Services

ACJS Agency or Nonprofit Organization Leadership and Innovation Award
Center for Combatting Elder Financial Abuse

Dorothy Bracey/Janice Joseph Minority and Women New Scholar Award
Tri Keah Henry, Indiana University Bloomington

ACJS Outstanding Mentors
Thomas J. Holt, Michigan State University
Danielle Boisvert, Sam Houston State University
Daniel Lee, Indiana University of Pennsylvania

Cognella Future Innovators in CJ Education Award
Sara Evans, Kennesaw State University

Student Poster Presentation Award
First Place: Kathleen Y. Chavez, Texas A&M International
Second Place: Godwin Egbe, The University of Mississippi

Student Panel Presentation Award
First Place: Godwin Egbe, The University of Mississippi
Paper: Public Perceptions of Presidential Pardons and Correctional Re-entry Programs for Terrorism Offenders in Nigeria
Second Place: Gift Onwuadiamu, University of Delaware
Paper: Protecting School Environment: Evaluating the Effectiveness of School Security

2026 Grant Winners

Student Scholarship Mini-Grant Travel Award for People of Color & Women
Samuel Agboola, University of Mississippi
Hyeseon Noh, University of South Carolina

ACJS Student Scholarship Award
Doctoral student - Samuel Agboola, University of Mississippi

ACJS Minority Mentorship Grant Award
Francis Boateng, The University of Mississippi