Victimology symposium kicks off

By JENNIFER PALMBERG

The Third American Symposium on Victimology opened Wednesday in the University Center. The event, held in honor of Victim Rights Week, is targeted at raising victimology awareness and also provides an opportunity for experts and students in the field to communicate with one another and spread information.

“[Victimology] is a work in progress and we learn more together than we do on our own,” keynote speaker James Rowland said.

Rowland is the former chief probation officer for Fresno County, creator of the first Victim Impact Statement and a former director of the California Department of Corrections. He was also a founding board member of the National Organization of Victim Assistance (NOVA), the world’s oldest victims’ organization.

Rowland said there are three main things he’s learned from working in victims rights.

•Victimology has come a long way in the past 50 years. The progress made should give hope toward the future. In the past, victims only received financial compensation and were emotionally neglected.

Today, there are more than 10,000 diverse victim services in the United States.

•There is a need for an increase in concern about the prison policies. He said there is a need for more than just punishment. Seven out of 10 criminals released will commit another crime. There is a need for education and training. With proper care, a lot of these criminals can turn around their lives.

He said we can’t lock them up for five years and let them sit in idleness and expect them to come out as responsible citizens.

•Victimology and related professions still have a lot to learn. Victims can have a huge impact on society by becoming victim advocates — officials who emotionally support victims, keep them knowledgably involved in their case and aid them in finding closure. And with help, victims have turned around their lives and helped others turn around their lives.

Rowland is one of many highly endowed criminologists-victimologists featured at the four-day event.

Others include Jane Nady Sigmon, a victim assistance specialist in the Overseas Service of the U.S. Department of State; Murray Strauss, a professor of sociology and co-director of the family research laboratory at the University of New Hampshire; Robert Jerin, a professor in the law and justice department at Endicott College; Marlene Young, the president of the world society of victimology and the former executive director of NOVA.

“I am amazed by some of the professionals attending this symposium,” said Ashley Barsam, 21, a criminology major with an emphasis in victimology. “But I didn’t come for any one person; I came for the whole experience. I want to learn more and see what other career options are available for me,” she said.

A handful of criminology students attended the event in hopes of learning something new.

“I came to be exposed to different areas in victimology,” said Ayami Sasaki, an international student from Japan. “Victimology is so diverse and everyone is studying something different.”

Sasaki said she was drawn to Fresno State because of the respected victimology program offered.

She said she is focusing on violence against women. She wants to help women become survivors rather than victims of crimes — an inspiration given to her by her grandparents, who survived the atomic bomb attacks of World War II.

“I’ve seen what they’ve had to go through to get through a traumatic time in their lives and I would like to help others get through traumatic times in their lives,” she said. “I hope to attend all four days of the symposium.”

Organizers, who spent hours putting together the event, said they were proud of the outcome.

“We’ve worked weekdays into the late hours of the night and even Saturdays trying to get everything ready,” said Chie Maekoya, who helped organize the event. “I think people are getting a lot out of it and I hope they’re learning a lot of new information about victimology. I also hope that people who are already in the profession are getting to know each other and are sharing ideas.”

The symposium is being held in University Center Room 202. Admission is free for everyone. The event ends Saturday at 11 a.m.