John Jay is equally concerned with improving the quality of public service, developing effective working relationships with public, quasi-public, and community agencies, and encouraging appropriate research. The graduate program has a direct involvement in developments in the field of criminal justice, particularly as related to public service educational needs. The college has an annual enrollment of approximately 10,000 students. Approximately 1,000 study for the master's degree and close to 100 pursue the doctorate in criminal justice offered under the jurisdiction of The Graduate School and University Center of The City University of New York. Dr. Maureen O'Connor brings her unique background in law and psychology to the classroom, enabling her to teach forensic psychology from a different perspective.
Every issue is treated as an interdisciplinary issue.
The professor began teaching a new course at John Jay, focusing on the issue of when social science should be used in court. Dr. O'Connor's most recent work has been in the field of sexual harassment, specifically examining factors that affect its definitions and legal outcomes in such cases. Her dissertation project was a meta-analysis of sexual harassment studies comparing its male versus female definitions. She also has worked at the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration and the National Institutes of Justice in the U.S. Department of Justice.