Criminal Justice Faculty Publications
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-2026
Abstract
This article describes a criminal justice senior-level undergraduate course, CRIJ 4350: Peace, Nonviolence, & Justice, at a Hispanic-serving institution known as the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. The course centers five key frameworks: critical pedagogy, intersectionality, decolonial theory, restorative and transformative justice, and trauma-informed care, as this course departs from carceral models of justice education. Grounded in theory, literature, and research from criminal justice, criminology, peace and conflict studies, sociology, political science, ethics/philosophy, social justice, human rights, and critical pedagogy, the course centers student reflection from course evaluations, relationships, and experiences of a faculty member. Students learn about structural violence, environmental injustice, and alternative justice practices through pláticas, community-based projects, and experiential learning. The course also redefines peace education as not only the absence of conflict but the presence of justice, healing, and resistance. Students' reflections and projects demonstrate substantial transformations in awareness, civic duty, and harmful systems. This article contributes to critical peace education and criminology by showcasing liberatory pedagogies that can transform justice education and promote social change. This article suggests that peace education is not an add-on but an integral part of criminal justice education in border communities defined by border militarization, racial surveillance, and intergenerational trauma.
Recommended Citation
Espinoza, Lucas. "Teaching Peace Where Borders Divide: Interdisciplinary Praxis in a Criminal Justice Program." Peace and Conflict Studies 33, no. 1 (2026): 1.
Publication Title
Peace and Conflict Studies
