Sep 2025
A Theory of Change for Impact at Scale
Read our theory of change for leveraging R&D to get the most social good out of government investments and create impact at scale.
Video: Creating Safer Communities by Improving Policing
Griffin Catalyst highlights the Policing Leadership Academy, a new national leadership program that brings together rising police leaders from around the country for five months of advanced, intensive training in management best practices, leveraging data and technology and building community trust—all with the ultimate goal of creating safer, more vibrant communities.
2024 End-of-Year Analysis: Chicago Crime Trends
Gun violence remains one of the most pressing challenges in America but there are signs of progress.
Video: The CVI Leadership Academy’s Third Cohort
This video features insights from the third cohort of the Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academy, a violence reduction program created to enhance the leadership and management skills of senior CVI leaders, enabling them to effectively run community-based organizations.
Building safer communities: Behavioral science innovations in youth violence prevention
This policy brief highlights results from a large-scale randomized controlled trial that evaluated the impact of Choose to Change® (C2C®) on participants’ criminal justice involvement.
Latest Updates
Book Review: What We Get Wrong About Violent Crime
Malcolm Gladwell pens a review of “Unforgiving Places,” a new book by Crime Lab Pritzker Director Jens Ludwig, that reflects on how the book “challenges our assumptions about why most shootings happen—and what really makes a city safe.”
Do the Police Have a Management Problem?
Crime Lab Pritzker Director Dr. Jens Ludwig was featured on the latest Freakonomics Radio episode with Policing Leadership Academy participants and leaders. In this episode, Jens and Freakonomics Radio host Stephen J. Dubner discussed our Policing Leadership Academy and the importance of professionalizing police leadership to effectively reduce gun violence.
In Chicago, cognitive behavioral therapy shows promise curbing youth violence
NPR’s Meg Anderson reported on Chicago’s Choose to Change (C2C), a program that combines trauma-informed therapy with wraparound supports and aims to reduce youth violence. The Crime Lab found that the program can effectively and sustainably reduce violence involvement and the likelihood of being arrested.
