Heath Grant

Dr. Heath Grant is an Assistant Professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, part of the City University of New York (CUNY), where he serves in the Department of Law and Police Science. He holds significant leadership roles, including former Deputy Chair of the department, and has extensive experience in program development, evaluation, and international policing strategies. His work focuses on juvenile violence prevention, social emotional learning, and fostering a culture of lawfulness globally.

Education:

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Queens University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
• Masters of Arts in Criminal Justice, John Jay College, New York
• Ph.D. in Criminal Justice, John Jay College, New York

Research Interests: Dr. Grant’s work centers on crime prevention strategies, particularly in developing nations, with an emphasis on community policing, social emotional learning, and the role of law enforcement in youth development. He has pioneered programs in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas, focusing on resiliency-building and curriculum development. His recent projects include assessing youth violence in the Caribbean and designing training programs for police forces in Bangladesh and Colombia.

Key Achievements:

• Recipient of prestigious fellowships: Bradley Post-doctoral Fellowship (Georgetown), Arthur Niederhoffer Fellowship, and Arts ’50 Scholarship.
• Secured and managed over $20 million in program funding across international initiatives.

Advising & Grants: As program executive at Success for Kids (SFK), he expanded social emotional learning programs reaching millions internationally. He currently leads research on animal-assisted interventions in correctional facilities and geo-spatial impacts on policing decisions in NYC.

Labs/Teams: Active in the Police Executive Research Forum as former Director of Research, and serves as a board member of the Every Child is Ours Foundation.