PULLMAN, Wash. — James F. Short Jr., professor emeritus of sociology at
Washington State University, received the Wolfgang Award for Distinguished
Achievement in Criminology at the American Society of Criminology meeting
in San Francisco Nov. 17. In addition to a plaque, he was given a $10,000 cash
award.
Short was cited for his significant contributions to the field of criminology
through research and policy studies in the areas of juvenile crime and its
prevention, youth gangs, the causes of youth violence, and the impact of
violent crime on society.
Presenters of the award said Short’s career embodies the tradition of excellence
and innovation characterizing the scholarship of Marvin Wolfgang, first
recipient of the award in 1993. The University of Pennsylvania professor of
criminology died in 1998.
Short was a member of the WSU sociology faculty, 1951-98; served as dean of
the Graduate School, 1964-68; and director of the Social Research Center,
1970-85. His research focus was criminology and gang behavior. Before he
retired in Pullman, Short completed his latest book “Poverty, Ethnicity and
Violent Crime” in 1997. The same year, he was president of the American
Society of Criminology. He continues to work with WSU graduate students in
sociology.
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