1st Edition
Practical Program Evaluation for Criminal Justice
Practical Program Evaluation for Criminal Justice shows readers how to apply the principles of fiscal responsibility, accountability, and evidence-based practice to criminal justice reform plans. Unlike other policy-based texts, which tend to focus more on implementation than assessment, this book provides applicable, step-by-step instruction on determining an initiative's necessity prior to its adoption (reducing the risk of wasting resources), as well as how to accurately gauge its effectiveness during initial roll-out stages. The book gradually introduces basic data analysis procedures and statistical techniques, which, once mastered, can be used to prove or disprove a program's worth. Lastly, the book introduces the types of stakeholders who should review evaluation results for quick action, as well as how to best structure reports to ensure their buy-in.
Biography
Gennaro F. Vito is a Distinguished University Scholar and professor in the Department of Justice Administration at the University of Louisville, where he has a faculty appointment in the Administrative Officer’s Course of the Southern Police Institute. He holds a Ph.D. in public administration from The Ohio State University. He is a past President and Fellow of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences and received its Bruce Smith Sr. Award in 2012. His research interests are concerned with criminal justice policy analysis and program evaluation and police management.
"Overall, I have little doubt that this particular text will be well-received by all as it is clearly successful in delivering on its proposed purpose and goals. The text is well-written and concise, yet at the same time authoritative and illustrative in its examples. In addition, the text is written in a manner that makes it largely accessible and useful for a wide array of audiences including academics, researchers, and practitioners as well as undergraduate and graduate students. It should definitely be on the shelf, or better yet on the desk and always open, for any and all of those who want to become versed and ultimately experts in program evaluation in criminology and criminal justice." — Wesley G. Jennings, Ph.D., University of South Florida
