Boston University Assistant Professor of Sociology Jessica Simes has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Early Career Grant for her research on racial inequality, mass incarceration, the conditions of prison confinement, and the social structure of cities.
The five-year grant will support Simes’ research project, “Mass Incarceration, Racial Segregation, and Spillover Effects in U.S. Communities,” which seeks to investigate the causes and consequences of mass incarceration within U.S. communities and neighborhoods.
“I’m thrilled to continue working on studying the conditions and effects of mass incarceration for U.S. communities with the generous support of the National Science Foundation,” Simes said. “This project will build a program of research and teaching aimed at examining how criminal justice policies have impacted community well-being and political participation, and how residential inequalities drive incarceration rates and disparities. Most importantly, this support will help me to take insights from research to directly impact policy and community-based interventions addressing racial inequality and mass incarceration.”
Simes joined the BU Arts & Sciences faculty in 2016, and is an expert on racial inequality, mass incarceration, the conditions of prison confinement, and the social structure of cities. She is also an affiliated faculty member in the Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences. Her current research projects include a field study of solitary confinement and studies of racial and mental health disparities in solitary confinement.
The NSF CAREER Grant supports early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization.