Outstanding Professional Award
Director Jeff Smith, D.Sc.
Dr. Jeff Smith’s career is a distinguished example of professional excellence, academic achievement, and dedicated service to the field of criminal justice. Beginning his law enforcement career in 1988 as a fifth-generation police officer, Dr. Smith served with the Lawrenceville Police Department for over 33 years, rising through the ranks to Captain.
In this role, he oversaw various functional units including patrol, traffic, investigations, and special operations. He was also a senior instructor and department training officer, teaching accident reconstruction, criminal law, traffic law, and constitutional law to officers nationwide.
After retiring from the Lawrenceville Police Department in January 2023, Dr. Smith transitioned to his current role as Director of Operations for the Office of the Solicitor General of Gwinnett County. In this capacity, he liaises with law enforcement agencies and municipal courts, manages budgets, coordinates with state agencies, and provides expertise on criminal cases, particularly traffic fatality investigations.
Beyond his operational leadership, Dr. Smith has made significant contributions to academia. While maintaining a full-time law enforcement career, he pursued advanced education, earning a Master of Public Administration in Justice Administration and a Doctor of Science in Emergency Management. Since 2010, he has served as an adjunct instructor at multiple universities, including Georgia Gwinnett College, Troy University, Georgia State University, and Texas A&M International University, consistently bridging classroom theory with practical field experience. He has published several articles in trade journals on topics such as disaster preparedness, accident reconstruction, and forensic analysis.
Dr. Smith has been an active member of the Southern Criminal Justice Association (SCJA) and the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) since 2010, serving on various boards and committees. He is also involved in extensive community service, holding leadership roles on non-profit boards, civic organizations, and faith-based initiatives, demonstrating a lifelong commitment to building safer and stronger communities. His unwavering dedication, professional excellence, and broad impact embody the spirit of the Outstanding Professional Award.
Outstanding Educator Award
Dr. James Hawdon
Virginia Tech
The Educator of the Year is the Association’s top award, recognizing excellence in teaching, research, and service. This year’s recipient, Dr. James Hawdon, exemplifies these qualities through a distinguished career dedicated to the advancement of criminal justice education.
Dr. Hawdon has spent his entire academic career in the southern region, beginning as a graduate student at the University of Virginia, followed by faculty service at Clemson University, and continuing in his longstanding role at Virginia Tech. A highly accomplished scholar, he has authored more than 120 refereed articles, generating over 5,800 citations with an h-index of 43.
Equally noteworthy is his impact as an educator. Dr. Hawdon is known for pedagogical creativity and for encouraging students to think critically and differently about the field. Many of his former students have gone on to academic careers, including leadership positions within SCJA, a testament to his mentorship and guidance.
Dr. Hawdon’s record of service is similarly distinguished. He has served on the SCJA Board of Directors, contributed significantly as an Associate Editor of the American Journal of Criminal Justice, and participated in numerous SCJA committees over the years. His leadership and commitment to the association have strengthened the organization and the discipline alike.
Committee reviewers emphasized the remarkable quality and quantity of his publications, the breadth of his sponsored research, and the strong endorsement provided in nomination letters from students, colleagues, and peers across the field. Together, these achievements affirm Dr. Hawdon’s outstanding contributions to teaching, research, and service, making him a most deserving recipient of SCJA’s Educator of the Year Award and lifetime membership in the association.
Tom Barker Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award
Zoey Andrews
University of West Georgia
Zoey Andrews is a senior double-majoring in Criminology and Psychology at the University of West Georgia. She is an aspiring scholar with a strong interest in supporting reentry efforts in Georgia.
Outside the classroom, Zoey is deeply engaged in campus life, serving as President of the Mock Trial Club and representing the University as a UWG Blue Coat. She also works at the domestic violence center in Carrollton, assisting survivors and counselors in their journey to healing. Zoey plans to continue her education in graduate school, pursuing studies in public administration or clinical psychology.
Outstanding Masters Student
Karina Costa Baraldi
University of Alabama
Karina Costa Baraldi is a master’s student at the University of Alabama under the mentorship of Drs. Matthew Dolliver and Yuliya Zabyelina. In addition to finalizing her thesis research which investigates protecting children from online abuse, and she has co-authored a forthcoming chapter, “Intersection of State Crime and Transnational Organised Crime,” in The Routledge Handbook of State Crime.
Karina has also taken on leadership roles in university committees and within the discipline, demonstrating a strong commitment to service alongside her academic achievements. In recognition of her outstanding contributions to research, teaching, and service, the Outstanding Master’s Student Award Committee selected her as this year’s recipient.
Outstanding Doctoral Student
Vitoria De Francisco Lopes
Ole Miss
Vitoria De Francisco Lopes is a doctoral candidate at the University of Mississippi who has distinguished herself through her research, teaching, and service in the field of juvenile justice. Before pursuing graduate study, she worked as a juvenile probation officer in Florida, practical experience that grounds her policy-relevant research.
As a master’s student, Vitoria played an integral role in several major projects examining law enforcement policies in Florida and began to develop her focus on juvenile justice. Her master’s thesis, which analyzed racial variation in the relationship between family structure and juvenile dispositions, was recognized with the SCJA Best Poster Award and the Graduate Achievement Award from her department in 2022.
At the doctoral level, Vitoria has maintained this momentum, producing six peer-reviewed publications, including first-authored work in top journals such as the Journal of School Violence, Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, and the American Journal of Criminal Justice. Her dissertation extends her focus on equity in juvenile justice by examining how family structure and family functioning shape delinquency and justice system outcomes, employing a range of methodological approaches to address these important questions.
Vitoria has also excelled as an instructor, teaching both undergraduate and graduate courses in person and online. Known for fostering critical thinking and linking material to practical applications, she has consistently earned strong student evaluations. Taken together, her achievements reflect an impressive record of research, teaching, and service, making her a deserving recipient of the Outstanding Doctoral Student Award.
Springer Outstanding American Journal of Criminal Justice Article
The Compounding Effect: How Co-Offending Exacerbates the Harm Caused by Violent Offenders
Emily Piper
Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge
Barak Ariel
Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge
Vincent Harinam
Mournival Applied Research
Matthew Bland
Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge
Student and Untenured Faculty Travel Award
Since 2021, SCJA has offered travel awards to support undergraduate and graduate students, as well as untenured faculty, by covering a two-night stay at the conference hotel. Applicants must be SCJA members, serve as lead authors on a conference paper or poster, and demonstrate how attending will enhance their careers. Preference is given to those enrolled in Southern region schools.
2025 Recipients:
Students
Jazmine Villarreal, Texas A&M University–San Antonio
Sara Diaz, Sam Houston State University
Ellie Yates, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Atlee Dean, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Johnna Isenberg, University of Tennessee–Knoxville
Kaitlyn Stearns, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Kathleen Hillman, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Allison Escobedo, The University of Texas at Dallas
Rachel Gilreath, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Faculty
Katelyn Hancock, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Matthew Hoggatt, University of Southern Mississippi
Stacey Clifton, Radford University