Dr. Chermak Receives Distinguished Scholar Award from ASC DTBC

October 13, 2021

Dr. Steve Chermak has received the American Society of Criminology (ASC) Division on Terrorism & Bias Crimes' 2021 Distinguished Scholar Award for his impact on research related to extremism, militias, and terrorism. The Distinguished Scholar Award is given out to those who have extensive scholarly records and are committed to scholarly innovation, moving the field forward while simultaneously addressing complex issues from a policy-oriented perspective. Dr. Chermak has published over 100 publications that have been read and cited by a global audience. In addition to his extensive scholarly contributions, Dr. Chermak has a long record of mentorship and commitment to developmental opportunities.

 

Steven Chermak is a professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University. Dr. Chermak is interested in studying terrorism, school shootings, mass shootings, criminal justice organizations, and media coverage of crime and criminal justice. Much of his work in the last ten years has focused on terrorist and extremist activity. He and several colleagues are responsible for building the Extremist Crime Database (ECDB), one of the leading databases on domestic terrorism activities in the US. The ECDB has allowed him to publish articles understanding patterns of violence of far right, far left, and al-Qaeda inspired extremists, documenting how lone wolf attacks are different than group-inspired terrorist attacks, and examining the characteristics of foiled terrorist plots. More recently, he and colleagues have received funding to build another database on fatal and non-fatal school shootings. This database is in the final stages of completion, and it will provide an opportunity to better understand the characteristics of perpetrators that commit school violence and discuss differences in schools victimized by fatal and non-fatal attacks.

Dr. Chermak’s research has been funded by the Department of Homeland Security, National Institute of Justice, and the Michigan State Police. He has published two books, seven edited books, and numerous research reports. His research has appeared in a number of journals including Journal of Quantitative Criminology, Criminology and Public Policy, Justice Quarterly, Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management, Journal of Criminal Justice, Criminal Justice Policy Review, and the Journal of Crime, Conflict, and the Media.