Former NCCD President Barry Krisberg presents Doug Nelson with the 2006 Katie Nichols Award.

Special Recognition Awards

Each year, the Executive Committee recognizes several deserving individuals through NCCD’s Special Recognition Awards. These awards distinguish academics, elected officials, and community advocates whose work aligns with and expands upon NCCD’s mission.

Donald Cressey Award

For outstanding academic contributions to criminology that promote programs and policies that are fair, humane, effective, and economically sound. 
Former recipients: Professor Michael Wald; Don Gottfredson, Rutgers University; Ronald Huff, Ohio State University; Frank Zimring, University of California; Marc Mauer, The Sentencing Project; Meda Chesney-Lind, Professor, Women’s Studies Program, University of Hawaii at Manoa; Norval Morris, Professor of Law and Criminology, University of Chicago; Professor Charles J.Ogletree, Jr., Harvard Law School; Professor Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Harvard School of Public Health; Professor Joan Petersilia, UC Irvine; Jeremy Travis, John Jay College of Criminal Justice; Professor Barbara Bloom, California State University, Sonoma; Professor Bill O. Hing, UC Davis School of Law

Albert Elias Award

For outstanding contributions to juvenile justice.
Former recipients: Honorable Ernestine Gray, Presiding Judge, Orleans Parish, Louisiana Juvenile Court; Yitzhak Bakal, North American Family Institute; Jerome Miller, National Center on Institutions and Alternatives; Honorable William J. Hibbler, Presiding Judge, Cook County Circuit Court; Juan Sanchez, Executive Director, Southwest Key Program; Carolyn Brown, The Roundhouse, Commonweal Children’s and Young Adults Program and Full Circle Programs; Orlando Martinez, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice; Bart Lubow, Annie E. Casey Foundation; Hon. Chandlee Johnson Kuhn, Chief Judge, Family Court of Delaware; Lawanda Ravoira, PACE Center for Girls; Joyce Burrell, New York State Office of Children and Family Services  

Grace B. Flandreau Award

To an individual in the field of juvenile justice or child welfare who, through writing and actions, advanced the compassionate care of troubled youngsters.
Former recipients: Estelle Richman, Director, Department of Social Services, Philadelphia; Senator Nancy Kassebaum, Michigan Department of Social Services; Mary Fairchild, Program Manager, National Conference of State Legislatures Children and Families; Honorable Myrna Field, Administrative Judge of the Family Court; Honorable Michael Skwierawski, Chief Justice, Milwaukee County; S. Christopher Baird, Children’s Research Center; Janice Ereth, Children’s Research Center; David Sanders, Casey Family Programs

Ira A. Lipman Award

To a public official who exemplifies enlightened and forceful leadership in implementing effective crime prevention and control policies that are fair, humane, and economically sound. 
Former recipients: Governor William Schaefer; Representative John Conyers; Attorney General Janet Reno; Senator Paul Simon; Dane County Executive Richard Phelps; Congressman Robert C. Scott; Senator Patrick Leahy; George Ryan, Governor of Illinois; Honorable Anthony M. Kennedy, United States Supreme Court; Hon. Gustavo Barreiro, Florida House of Representatives; Governor Jim Doyle, Wisconsin; Governor Jon Corzine and the New Jersey State Legislature

Roscoe Pound Award

To a leader in the public or private sector who shows a significant and sustained commitment to promoting criminal justice reforms consistent with NCCD’s values.
Former recipients: Michael Hennessey, Sheriff, City and County of San Francisco; James Aiken, Director of Corrections, Indiana; John Robinson, Under Sheriff Cook County; Linda Rossi, HD Rhode Island DYS; Kenneth McGinnis, Director of Corrections, Michigan; Glenda Hatchett, Juvenile Court Justice, Atlanta; Laurie Robinson, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs; Joseph D. Lehman, Secretary, Washington State Department of Corrections; Honorable Leonard P. Edwards, Santa Clara County Superior Court; John J. Wilson, United States Department of Justice; Michael Jacobson, Director, Vera Institute of Justice; Michael Mahoney, John Howard Association; Lee P. Brown, former Mayor of Houston

Katie Nichols Award

To a leader in the private or nonprofit sector who shows a significant and sustained commitment to community service consistent with NCCD’s values.
Former recipients: Mimi Silbert, Delancey Street, San Francisco; Don Specter, Prison Law Office; Douglas W. Nelson, President, Annie E. Casey Foundation; David Kakishiba, East Bay Asian Youth Center; Julie Stewart, Families Against Mandatory Minimums

Gerhard Mueller Award

For outstanding contributions to criminology that bring a global perspective to US justice policy and advance human rights.
Former recipients: Professor Paul Takagi, University of California, Berkeley; Harold Koh, Dean, Yale Law School