Hi everyone! I am so thankful for the opportunity to write for the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s College of Arts and Sciences News site.

I would like to take a moment to introduce myself first and foremost. My name is Ter'Ricka Brundidge, and I am a native of Birmingham and currently enrolled in UAB's Master of Science in Criminal Justice program for my first year. I also finished my bachelor's degree in criminal justice here at UAB. My ultimate professional goal is to carry on with my academic pursuits and pursue a Ph.D. in criminal justice and criminology and eventually find a career in a research institution or in academia.

My time as a member of the UAB honors research cohort in criminal justice during my senior year sparked my initial interest in research. For my research project, I partnered with Dr. Lindsay Leban on the topic of how neighborhood factors can affect the relationship between delinquency and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). I have had access to many opportunities as a result of being a member of this cohort and collaborating with Dr. Leban on this project. First, my research was accepted for presentation at the Southern Criminal Justice Association Conference in September 2023 in Mobile, Alabama. Also, it was accepted for publication as my first article in the Journal of Criminal Justice titled, “The conditioning role of perceptions of collective efficacy in the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and delinquency.”

And with that, I come to my latest acknowledgment. This spring, I was given the chance to submit an application for a University of Alabama student research competition for a “Distinguished New Criminologist” award. I had the good fortune to receive this award and present my published work, "The conditioning role of perceptions of collective efficacy in the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and delinquency," to the faculty and students of the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at The University of Alabama. I felt incredibly grateful for every second of this experience. The students, instructors, and staff were all excellent and very kind, and they gave me great advice on how to proceed with my coursework and future profession. Additionally, I had the opportunity to network with graduate students in the same field.

As I carry out further research, I hope to learn more about neighborhood crime and go deeper into the fields of victimization and juvenile justice.