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Adjunct Assistant Professor
Columbia University School of Public Health
Mailman School of Public Health
Dr. Joel Capellan earned his PhD in Criminal Justice from the CUNY Graduate Center/John Jay College. His research focuses on gun violence, race and policing, and policy evaluation, and has been featured in various outlets, including The Guardian, NPR, and New York Magazine. Appointed by New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Dr. Capellan serves on the New Jersey and Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium.
Dr. Capellan has extensive experience in Central America, training and managing policy projects. As Co-Principal Investigator for the USAID-funded Academy for Security Analysis, he developed and taught courses on policing, data analysis, and program evaluation. He collaborated with organizations like Honduras’ National Police and Poder Judicial to implement and evaluate USAID projects in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.