Jennifer Bryan, PhD
Partner
Dr. Jennifer L. Bryan is a passionate and seasoned educator, facilitator, and research, evaluation, and technical assistance consultant with more than 25 years of experience working on issues of social justice, community building, and economic development. Dr. Bryan has served as Principal Investigator and Senior Researcher on numerous grants and contracts with some of the most prestigious and leading organizations on issues of justice: the Vera Institute of Justice, the Center for Court Innovation (CCI), and the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO). She has managed grants with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), the Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of Health (DOH), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Ford Foundation, the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, and numerous other organizations and agencies looking to “move the needle” toward more social just, economically stable, and healthy communities. As a strong advocate of social justice, Dr. Bryan has worked on some of the most compelling issues facing today’s society such as prisoner reentry, human trafficking, community-police relationships, and immigration.
Dr. Bryan is dedicated to working on issues through the framework of Restorative Justice. Certified within the Native American art of Peacemaking Circles, Dr. Bryan as helped to train organizations on how to ameliorate issues of gang violence, bullying, crimes against vulnerable communities, hate crimes, community-police relationships, and trauma. Part of Dr. Bryan’s dissertation, entitled: “Terror Town: the Impact of 9/11 on Arab Muslims and Intergroup Relationships in Jersey City” centered on the experiences of an incredibly vulnerable community that came under intense suspicion for suspected ties to terrorism, and was published by the Russell Sage Foundation in a series called Wounded City: The Social Impact of 9/11. Dr. Bryan has also published on the role of Philanthropy in prisoner reentry, and the issue of prisoner reentry in the state of New Jersey. In addition to consulting, Dr. Bryan is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Criminology at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). Some of the courses she enjoys teaching include: Introduction to Criminology; Women and Criminal Justice; Policing in American Society; Research Methods; Multicultural Justice, Ethics in Criminal Justice, White Collar Crime, Victimology, Gangs, and Criminal Justice in Urban Communities. Dr. Bryan has also held teaching positions at William Paterson University (WPU) and New Jersey City University (NJCU). Dr. Bryan received a PhD in Sociology from Yale University and bachelors degrees in the Administration of Justice and Psychology from Rutgers University with a Certificate in Criminology. Dr. Bryan an ethnographer at heart, and has a love for applied research that attempts to bridge theory and practice. She is the mother of two girls, Angelia and Gianna, and in her spare time enjoys working on community revitalization projects with her husband, Nick.