Academic Centers of Excellence

The Academic Centers of Excellence, or ACEs, bring together resources and experts from varied backgrounds to study youth violence issues, share solutions, and work with communities to prevent youth violence.

Youth violence is widespread in the United States. Look at the facts:

• Youth under 18 accounted for about 15% of violent crime arrests in 2001.
• About one in three high school students say they have been in a physical fight in the past year, and more than one in six students in grades 6 to 10 say they are bullied.

However, youth violence prevention and intervention efforts have helped turn the tide. While the number of deaths and serious injuries related to youth violence increased dramatically during the late 1980s and early 1990s, between 1992 and 2001, juvenile arrests for weapons charges dropped 35%; the juvenile arrest rate for murder fell 62%, dropping to its lowest level in more than two decades; and the juvenile arrest rate for violent crimes dropped 21%.

It takes the effort of many to prevent youth violence. ACE faculty and staff have multidisciplinary expertise in youth violence research, program development and implementation, evaluation, and community organization. Through the collaboration of public health professionals, researchers, medical professionals, epidemiologists, psychologists, criminologists, sociologists, mental health professionals, and educators, the ACEs work with local communities, conducting research, and implementing and evaluating programs in youth violence prevention.

Each ACE addresses national, regional, or local youth violence prevention priorities in communities throughout the United States. The ACEs conduct surveillance activities, design and implement research projects, develop interventions, evaluate programs, and disseminate their findings. Each ACE has a committee of community members, including representatives of agencies and organizations serving the community. The committee provides local contacts, overall guidance, and advice on agendas and the development of a community action plan.

ACEs collaborate with state and local health departments, schools, public agencies such as recreation departments and housing authorities, community-based organizations, universities, Injury Control Research Centers (ICRCs), Prevention Research Centers, national youth violence prevention organizations, and other Academic Centers of Excellence. ACEs nurture community partnerships to prevent violence, help to organize people and agencies across different sectors (e.g., public health, justice, education, business, faith communities), assess community resources, and map community assets. The focused, comprehensive approach the ACEs use enables a fuller understanding of and response to the nature and dynamics of local violence. ACEs also train, provide technical assistance to, and/or mentor health professionals, researchers, practitioners, students, and community members, covering a range of topics of interest to local youth violence prevention efforts.

The goal of the Academic Centers of Excellence is to enhance the capacity of communities and universities to prevent youth violence. Surveillance data, programs, publications, and research findings from the ACEs inform policies and practices adopted by local and state health departments, schools, community-based organizations, and other public agencies. Local agencies and organizations will be better equipped to implement and maintain effective violence prevention programs and services. Universities with ACE programs will have an improved academic infrastructure for service learning and student practicum opportunities. Both professionals and community members will develop violence prevention skills.

Academic Centers of Excellence in Youth Violence Prevention

Contact Information, E-Mail, and Web Links

Columbia University
Columbia Center for Youth Violence Prevention
Bruce Link, Ph.D. - Principal Investigator
Mailman School of Public Health
722 W. 168th St. Suite 1609
New York, NY 10032
Email: Bgl1@columbia.edu
Web site: http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/sph/ccyvp

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
The Philadelphia Collaborative Violence Prevention Center
Joel A. Fein, M.D. MPH – Principal Investigator
Joseph Stokes, Jr. Research Institute
3615 Civic Center Boulevard
Philadelphia, PA 19104-4318
Email: fein@email.chop.edu
Web site: http://stokes.chop.edu/programs/injury/our_research/violence_intervention.php

Harvard University
Harvard Youth Violence Prevention Center
David Hemmenway, Ph.D. – Principal Investigator
Harvard School of Public Health Health Policy and Management
677 Huntington Ave., Kresge 309
Boston MA 02115
Email: Hemenway@hsph.harvard.edu
Web site:http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/hyvpc

Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University Center for the Prevention of Youth Violence
Phillip Leaf, Ph.D. – Principal Investigator
Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health
624 North Broadway
Baltimore, MD 21205
Email: pleaf@jhsph.edu
Web site: http://www.jhsph.edu/PreventYouthViolence/index.html

Meharry Medical College
Nashville Urban Partnership
Academic Center of Excellence
Paul D. Juarez, Ph.D. – Principal Investigator
1005 Dr. D.B. Todd, Jr. Blvd
Nashville, TN 37208
Email: pjuarez@mmc.edu
Web site: http://nupace.mmc.edu

University of California
Berkeley Center on Culture, Immigration, and Violence Prevention
Franklin Zimmering, JD - Principal Investigator
Institute for the Study of Social Change
383 Boalt Hall Berkeley,
CA 94720-7200
Email: Zimring@law.berkeley.edu
Web site: http://www.yvpcenter.org

University of California
Riverside Southern California Academic Center of Excellence on Youth Violence Prevention
Nancy Guerra, Ph.D. - Principal Investigator
University of California at Riverside
Presley Center for Crime and Justice
110 College Building South
Riverside, CA 92521
Email: Nancy.guerra@ucr.edu
Web site: http://www.stopyouthviolence.ucr.edu

University of Hawai‘i, Mânoa
Asian/Pacific Islander Youth Violence Prevention Center
Earl Hishinuma, Ph.D. – Principal Investigator
John A Burns School of Medicine
1356 Lusitana St., 4th Floor
Honolulu, HI 96813
hishinumae@dop.hawaii.edu
Email: hishinumae@dop.hawaii.edu
Web site: http://www.api-center.org

University of Illinois, Chicago
Chicago Center for Youth Violence Prevention
Deborah Gorman-Smith, PhD – Principal Investigator
Institute of Juvenile Research (M/C 747)
Department of Psychiatry
1747 W Roosevelt Rd.
Chicago, IL 60608
Email: debgs@uic.edu
Web site: http://www.psych.uic.edu/ccyvp/index.html

Virginia Commonwealth University
Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Youth Violence Prevention
Albert Farrell, PhD – Principal Investigator
Department of Psychology
Box 842018 Richmond, VA 23284
Email: afarrell@mail1.vcu.edu
Web site: http://www.octobercenter.vcu.edu

ACE Coordinating Center
Gregory Yee Mark, D. Crim. – Principal Investigator
Honolulu Office: University of Hawaii at Manoa
Department of Psychiatry
1441 Kapiolani Blvd.,
Suite 1802 Honolulu, HI 96814
Oakland Office:
1970 Broadway, Suite 500
Oakland, CA 94612
Email: apoyvpc@dop.hawaii.edu

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control

Science Officers
Cory Ferdon, CFerdon@cdc.gov
Tamara Haegerich, THaegerich@cdc.gov
Joanne Kelvens, JKlevens@cdc.gov
Jen Wyatt, JWyatt@cdc.gov

Project Officers
Michele Hoover, MHoover@cdc.gov
Candice Jackson, CJackson@cdc.gov
Reshma Mahendra, RMahendra@cdc.gov

ACE Web site: http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/res-opps/ACE/ace.htm

Central Address
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
Division of Violence Prevention
Prevention Development and Evaluation Branch
4770 Buford Highway
Mailstop K-60
Atlanta, GA 30341