University Professor Faye Taxman Joins Schar School Faculty

University Professor Faye S. Taxman, a health service criminologist and founding director of the Center for Advancing Correctional Excellence! (ACE!), joins the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University on October 1.

Taxman has been at the university since 2007 and is recognized for her work in the development of “seamless systems-of-care models” that link the criminal justice system with healthcare and other services. She also studies how to reengineer probation and parole supervision services and reforming justice agencies. In the past her work has been funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute of Health, the National Institute of Justice, the National Institute of Corrections, and the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

Her many awards include a 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Division of Corrections and Sentencing of the American Society of Criminology. She is recognized as an accomplished scholar and widely cited in the media. She will teach Criminal Justice Organizations in the U.S. at the Schar School in the spring.

“Faye comes to us with a wealth of experience in the areas of criminal justice and criminal justice reform, health policies and reform, risk assessment, and evidence-based practices and policies,” said Schar School Dean Mark J. Rozell. “We are delighted to welcome such a noted scholar as Professor Taxman to the Schar School faculty. Her expertise is exactly what we need to build on our efforts to address such critical issue areas as racial justice and criminal justice reform." 

Taxman’s most recent project is a multi-year, multi-million-dollar NIDA/NIH-funded project, Justice Community Innovation Network (JCOIN).  The project focuses on studying innovative strategies to facilitate recovery for individuals with substance use disorders involved in the justice system. Across the country, JCOIN is a $141 million initiative of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which includes 15 other research centers and community practitioners across justice-and community based service settings to identify how individuals can effectively access high quality treatment, whether detained or residing in the community.

The Mason JCOIN has a critical role for supporting the overall initiative and conducting research to identify effective dissemination strategies for reaching criminal justice stakeholders. 

“My translational health services criminology research agenda will benefit from the diverse, talented faculty of the Schar School,” said Taxman. “The Schar School has the reach to address racial justice issues that need immediate attention to reform justice and health organizations to better serve society.”

ABOUT THE SCHAR SCHOOL
The Schar School of Policy and Government is one of the 10 schools and colleges of George Mason University, with approximately 2,000 students, 90 full-time faculty members, and 23 degree and certificate programs offered on Mason’s campuses in Fairfax and Arlington, Va. Among the degree programs are government and international affairs, public policy, public administration, political science, international security, and international commerce and policy. The Schar School prepares undergraduate and graduate students to be leaders and managers who solve problems and advance the public good in all sectors and levels of government—in the United States and throughout the world.

For more, contact Communications Manager Buzz McClain at bmcclai2@gmu.edu

A dynamic education for an evolving world.