Christine M. Cole has been appointed as the Executive Director of the Crime and 

Justice Institute at Community Resources for Justice. Headquartered in Boston, MA, with additional offices and contracts around the nation, the Crime and Justice Institute (CJI) works to make criminal and juvenile justice systems more efficient, promoting accountability while achieving better outcomes.

"We are thrilled that Christine will be joining our staff," said Scott Harshbarger, chair of the CRJ board of directors. "Her experience across many disciplines, combined with her national and international network of professional contacts, will be important as we move our work at CJI to the next level."

Christine has worked for 29 years in the safety and justice sector, with significant experience in institutional and community based corrections, policing, and victim advocacy. For the past seven years she served as the executive director for the Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. During her tenure Christine secured over $6 million in research projects focused on safety and justice measurement, improvement, and reform. She was responsible for leading and managing projects on both a national and international scale.

Christine is well known among police leaders for her work on the Executive Session on Policing at Harvard Kennedy School and its paper series "New Perspectives on Policing" . She has also provided great leadership in a research initiative examining the response to the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings, which resulted in a report titled "Why was Boston Strong?"

Her earlier experience included an appointment as chief of staff for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety, as well as executive and staff positions at several large-city police departments. This work built on her early professional experience as a Victim Witness Advocate in the Office of the Middlesex District Attorney in 

Cambridge, MA.

CRJ's President and CEO, John Larivee, said "Christine is exactly the kind of talented, experienced leader we had hoped to attract to the position. CJI has tremendous potential for growing our impact and to continue to be seen as a leader in the field. Christine will be very effective in leading that growth and development."

On learning of her appointment, many colleagues commented on their experience with Christine:

The Crime and Justice Institute could not have picked a more suitable and qualified person to fill this role. As someone who understands and truly cares for those with substance use disorders-especially those in the criminal justice system, Christine brings years of experience and passion to this position. I look forward to working with Christine, and the Crime and Justice Institute.

-          Michael Botticelli

           Acting Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy

CRJ is fortunate to have Christine join their staff and we in the criminal justice world are fortunate to have her work continue.  I offer her my congratulations and look forward to many productive years ahead.

-          William J. Bratton

           Commissioner, New York City Police Department

Christine will be an outstanding addition to the CRJ team. As a member of our board, she has served with distinction and been a valuable partner in advancing our work. Her expertise in building collaboration among criminal justice stakeholders and her insight on key issues that cut across the criminal justice 

field - especially policing policy and practice, comprehensive strategic planning, and procedural justice, inform her work and have contributed significantly to her success to date. I wish her well at the Crime and Justice Institute and look forward to a building a substantive working relationship with CJI under her leadership.

-          Cabell Cropper

           Executive Director, National Criminal Justice Association

Christine's significant experience and accomplishments at Harvard will be of immense value to CRJ and the Crime and Justice Institute. As a talented, skillful facilitator, she embraces "translational criminology" employing a variety of strategies to insure that the best research and evidenced-based practices are understood by practitioners. She is also expert at helping policymakers implement research findings in real world settings.

-          Joan Petersilia

                        The Adelbert H. Sweet Professor of Law, Stanford Law School 

Christine will begin her tenure as executive director in November 2014.