San Diego, CA: Considering the complicated problems facing our communities, police departments, courts, and prisons are regularly assisted by experts in forensic psychology and criminal justice, helping to provide a safer environment for all of us. In response to this powerful community need, Alliant International University, through the Center for Forensic Studies (CFS), will offer a doctoral programs in forensic psychology at its San Diego and Sacramento campuses beginning Fall 2008.

Just a few of the specializations available to CFS students are: police psychology, clergy and teacher sex abuse, terrorism, jury selection, assessment and treatment of sex offenders, neuropsychology, criminal profiling, competence to receive death penalty, correctional psychology, child custody, child neglect and abuse, prevention of workplace and school violence, investigative psychology, expert witness, and many others.

San Diego Program Emphasis & Director

Robert A. Leark, Ph.D., is the program director for the Center for Forensic Studies doctoral program in San Diego. Dr. Leark is noted for his research in the field of neuropsychology, including disorders of attention and genetic disorders. This expertise has led him to focus on death penalty cases and other criminal trials. Dr. Leark also provides reviews for numerous peer-reviewed journals in neuropsychology. In addition to being a member of the American Psychological Association, including the American Psychology-Law Society (division 41) and Neuropsychology (division 40), he is a Fellow of the National Academy of Neuropsychology. He and his students regularly present their research at the American Psychology-Law Society conferences, as well as the International Forensic Mental Health Association conferences. Dr. Leark comments, "Like the counterpart programs in LA and Fresno, this doctoral program is an integration of behavioral science and the law. In addition to acquiring clinical skills relevant to the practice of psychology, our students will also acquire skills to assist the courts or other venues of the law (law enforcement, corrections, etc.). We fully expect our students to have academic and career success."

Eric Hickey, Ph.D., will also instruct in the San Diego doctoral program. Dr. Hickey has taught many courses in criminal personalities, sex crimes, homicide and psychopathology. Dr. Hickey has considerable field experience working with the criminally insane, psychopaths, sex offenders and other habitual criminals. He is also the author of several books, including Serial Murders and Their Victims, Sex Crimes and Paraphilia, and the Encyclopedia of Murder and Violent Crime. Dr. Hickey notes, "Alliant is the most progressive school in forensic studies in the country. We have the faculty with the right credentials, and we are looking for men and women who want to be on the cutting edge of forensic psychology."

Sacramento Program Emphasis & Director

Sacramento students looking to establish specialized career fields in forensic psychology and criminal justice will be taught by leading experts in the field, including Dr. Lenore Tate, Assistant Program Director and Associate Professor, and Dr. Eric Hickey, one of the nation's foremost authorities on multiple homicide and sex crimes.

A licensed clinical psychologist, Dr. Tate received her Ph.D. from the California School of Professional Psychology-Fresno and was selected by the National Institute of Mental Health as a two year Post Doctoral Fellow specializing in Neuropsychology and Geriatrics. Dr. Tate began her professional career as head of the Psychology Program at Prairie View A&M University and subsequently was recruited as the Assistant Director and Assistant Professor of the Adult Development and Aging Program at Arizona State University. Dr. Tate has focused for more than a decade on trauma, violence and abuse and public policy. Her current research activities and professional interest focus on: Decreasing the disparities in academic achievement in adolescents who have been diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorders as well as conduct disorders and domestic violence (with an emphasis on perpetrators and batterer's treatment programs) in California. She currently consults and provides trainings with the public and private sectors, including Fortune 500 companies on workplace trauma, violence and abuse as well as wellness issues.

About Alliant International University

Founded in 2001, Alliant International University is a WASC-accredited non-profit university that prepares students for professional careers in psychology, education, business and forensics. Alliant offers mentored field experiences and individual coaching that allows students to develop hands-on professional skills and practical experience with clients. With headquarters in San Francisco and our San Diego college, Alliant also has campuses in Fresno, Los Angeles, Irvine, Sacramento and locations; it also hosts accredited programs in Mexico City, Mexico; Hong Kong, China and Tokyo, Japan.