Purpose and Goals

The College of Juvenile Justice offers undergraduate courses leading to a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice with five concentrations to choose from (policing, corrections, juvenile justice, legal studies, criminalistics) or no concentration selection. The College also offers graduate courses leading to a Master of Science degree in Juvenile Justice, and a Ph.D. degree in Juvenile Justice.

The College of Juvenile Justice is committed to preparing students to be nationally competitive for graduate education, leadership, and careers in criminal/juvenile justice. Its purpose is to provide education and training in juvenile justice and to produce students who will ultimately improve the juvenile justice system and work to resolve the problems of delinquency.   

Instructional Organization 

Instructional Organization

Program	Degree Offered
Criminal Justice	BSCJ
Juvenile Justice	BSCJ, MSJJ, PhD

The Texas Juvenile Crime Prevention Center

In 1997, the Texas Legislature authorized the creation of the Texas Juvenile Crime Prevention Center (Texas JCPC) at Prairie View A&M University. This resulted in the creation of the College of Juvenile Justice. The Texas JCPC is unique in the State of Texas and the nation and is committed to assisting with the reduction of juvenile delinquency.

The purpose of the Texas JCPC is to:

• Increase the knowledge of educators, practitioners, and others by conducting research and evaluation relating to juvenile crime;
• Improve the knowledge and skills of students in the field of criminal justice by offering undergraduate degrees, graduate degrees, and continuing education;
• Improve the dissemination of information relating to the reduction of juvenile crime;
• Increase knowledge about programs and policies that address juvenile crime; and
• Enhance the skills of personnel by providing training and advice for practitioners engaged in juvenile delinquency prevention.

Justice Studies

Alpha Phi Sigma - National Honor Society in Criminal Justice. The Honor Society was created to recognize scholarship among students of Criminal Justice and provide them with opportunities to attend various conferences sponsored by the national organization. Students are also provided information about opportunities in careers in Criminal Justice as well as educational opportunities in graduate and professional schools.

The Criminal Justice Club. This organization is open to any student majoring or minoring in Criminal Justice at this institution. The primary purpose of the organization is to provide its members with information about career opportunities and graduate and professional educational opportunities in the field. They also provide a forum for various recruiters to speak to its members and they also take field trips to area criminal justice agencies to observe and speak with professionals.