FACULTY PROFILE
Dr. Jack Norton is an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at Governors State University, where he teaches courses in corrections, policing, social justice, and the intersections of race, gender, and class in the criminal justice system. He earned his Ph.D. in Earth and Environmental Sciences from the CUNY Graduate Center, an M.A. in Geography from the University of Washington, and a B.A. in Geography from McGill University. A geographer by training, Dr. Norton brings an interdisciplinary perspective to the study of crime and punishment, emphasizing writing, research literacy, and critical investigation as essential tools for his students’ professional and intellectual growth.
Dr. Norton’s research examines the geography of incarceration in the United States, particularly the changing role of local jails in rural counties and small cities. His publications have appeared in leading academic and public venues, including Antipode, The Baffler, N+1, The Guardian, and The New York Review of Books. He is co-editor of The Jail Is Everywhere: Fighting the New Geography of Mass Incarceration (Verso, 2024). His current projects include a multi-year study of drug treatment and the justice system in Eastern Kentucky, supported by the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky.
At Governors State, Dr. Norton serves as faculty advisor for Alpha Phi Sigma, the national criminal justice honor society, and as a member of numerous university and departmental committees. He has contributed to professional organizations including the American Studies Association, the American Association of Geographers, the American Society of Criminology, and the Appalachian Studies Association. He is frequently invited to speak at universities, conferences, and public forums, and has addressed audiences at Stanford University, the New York Public Library, Loyola University Chicago, and Johns Hopkins University among others.