Portrait image of Maria Garase
Maria Garase

Dean, The School of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, Associate Professor, Criminology & Criminal Justice

Contact Information

OFFICE: Preston 109
PHONE: 814-824-3675

Dr. Garase currently serves as Dean of the School of Social & Behavioral Sciences. She is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Justice and Community Health and teaches primarily in the Criminal Justice Administration graduate program.聽 Her teaching and research interests include post-secondary education in prisons, pardon and commutation processes, issues in juvenile justice, and criminal justice reform. She is certified in the Inside Out Prison Exchange pedagogy and teaches an Issues in Criminal Justice course as a high impact practice group comprised of both university and incarcerated students at a medium security male prison. 聽She has written a book, published a book chapter and various articles, delivered over forty presentations and invited talks, and facilitated various criminal justice workshops. 聽She is active in national, regional, and state, criminal justice professional organizations. 聽Prior to working in academia, she was a counselor specialist at a community-based treatment program for system-impacted young women.

About Dr. Garase
    • Ph.D., Criminology, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
    • M.S., Administration of Justice, 管家婆心水论坛 University
    • B.A., Criminal Justice, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania
    • Inside Out Prison Exchange course: Issues in Criminal Justice, which is taught in a medium security, male, state prison, with 10 incarcerated students and 10 university students.聽
    • Ethics in Criminal Justice; Criminal Justice Program Evaluation, Women and Crime
    • Restorative Justice Practices
    • CRJS 326: Advanced Criminology
    • CRJS 343: Criminal Justice Ethics
    • CRJS 305: 聽Issues in Criminal Justice
    • CRJS 335: Women and Crime
    • CRJS 410: Seminar Seminar/Capstone in Criminal Justice
    • CJA 501: Research Methods聽
    • CJA 595: Women and Crime聽
    • CJA 604: Criminal Justice Planning and Evaluation
    • CJA 605: Government Management
    • CJA 629: Drugs, Crime and Culture聽
    • CJA 634: Criminology and Crime Policy
    • Post-Secondary Education in Prisons
    • Pennsylvania Pardons and Commutations of Life Sentences
    • Therapeutic Arts and Juvenile Justice聽
    • Service Learning, Civic Engagement, and Criminal Justice聽Reform
    • Over the years I鈥檝e had students publish and present research with me on the topic areas of: safe haven laws, intimate partner violence prevention initiatives, dating violence and bystander interventions on college campuses, and PA state re-sentencing policies and practices. 聽
    • Students have also aided in the research process on topics including: reentry programming, prison gardening, women and crime, and pardons and commutations.
    • In my senior seminar course, students engaged in community-based service learning projects. 聽Some agency projects included: reentry planning with the Erie County Reentry Services and Support Alliance (ECRSSA); team work and goal planning with the Boys and Girls Club; domestic violence awareness campaign with SafeNet.
    • Citizen鈥檚 Advisory Committee, Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole聽
    • Erie County Pardon Project, Leadership Team and 管家婆心水论坛 University Hub Coordinator
    • Facilitator, State Correctional Institution (SCI) Albion Think Tank on Restorative Justice
    • Erie County Truancy Taskforce
    • Faculty Advisory Committee, WestPac Career Development
    • Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences, Executive Board
    • Harborcreek Youth Services, Board of Directors (previous)
    • Erie County Crime Victim Center, Board of Directors (previous)
    • Garase, M. L. (2022). 聽鈥淪econd Chances: The Hidden Costs of Criminal Records and the Erie County Pardon Project.鈥 Paper presented at the Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Williamsport, PA.
    • Garase, M.L. (2022). 鈥淭he Meaning of Life in Pennsylvania: The Changing Landscape of Commutations and Second Chances for Individuals Serving Life Sentences.鈥 Paper presented at the Pennsylvania Criminal Justice Educators (PACJE) Conference, Latrobe, PA.聽
    • Garase, M.L. & Thomas, J. (2021). 鈥淯npacking the Pardon and Commutation Process in PA: The Role of Victim Notification and Participation.鈥 Paper presented on Zoom at the Erie County Crime Victim Center Annual Conference for Victims Rights. Erie, PA.
    • Garase, M. L. (2020). 聽鈥淚nnovative Ideas from Inside-Out Think Tanks鈥 Presenter for the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program. 聽Zoom videoconference.聽
    • Garase, M.L. (November 2020). 聽鈥淎madou Diallo鈥 Criminal Justice in America: The Encyclopedia of Crime, Law Enforcement, Courts, and Corrections. (ABC-CLIO, LLC).聽
    • Garase, M.L. (March 2019). 聽鈥淚ntimate Partner Violence Prevention Initiatives鈥 Encyclopedia of Women and Crime (Wiley Press).聽
    • Garase, M.L. (March 2019). 鈥淪afe Haven Laws鈥 Encyclopedia of Women and Crime (Wiley Press). 聽
    • Garase, M. L. (2019). 聽鈥淓ducating the Incarcerated: 聽The Role of Higher Education in the Correctional Arena.鈥 Paper presented at the Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Williamsport, PA.
    • Garase, M. L. (2018). 聽鈥淭hinking Outside of the Box: Participation in an Inmate Facilitated Restorative Justice Think Tank and Its Impact on University Teaching and Learning.鈥 Paper presented at the Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Bristol, RI.聽
    • Atkins, B., & Garase, M. L. (2018). 聽鈥淯npacking the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA): Identification, Investigation, and Resource Allocation to Vulnerable Inmate Populations.鈥 Paper presented at the Erie County Crime Victim Center Annual Conference, Erie, PA.
    • Garase, M. L. (2017). 聽鈥淔rom Trauma Informed Care to Therapeutic Arts: A 管家婆心水论坛 University and Harborcreek Youth Services Collaborative Initiative.鈥 聽Paper presented at the Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Bristol, RI.
    • Garase, M. L. (2016). 聽鈥淎ttitudes Toward Bystander Intentions to Intervene in Sexual Assaults: 聽Constructive Ways that Universities Can Use Data to Create Change on Campuses.鈥 Paper presented at the Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Bristol, RI.
    • Garase, M. L. (2016). 聽鈥淐ollege Students and Bystander Intentions to Intervene: 聽Consent, Confrontation, and Assistance鈥 Paper presented at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Denver, CO.
    • Garase, M. L. & Bair S.*(2015). 聽鈥淐ollege Students' Rape Myth Acceptance and Intentions to Intervene.鈥 Paper presented at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Conference, Orlando, FL. *student presenter
    • American Bar Endowment Opportunity, Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity Grant ($8,000) for a Pardon Fellow for the Erie County Pardon Project, 管家婆心水论坛 University Hub. (2021-2022).
    • Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, Outstanding Mentor Award (2018)
    • Regional Fellow Award, Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences (2017)
    • Gerhard O.W. Mueller Innovator Award, Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences (2010)
    • University Award for Excellence in Service Learning, Gannon University (2010)
    • Emerging Scholar Award, Northeastern Association of Criminal Justice Sciences (2007)