Jocelyn Fontaine is vice president for strategic program development at the Urban Institute. She works with the executive office, development office, and the research and program divisions to develop strategies and build support for Urban’s research and policy initiatives. She is also a senior fellow of justice policy. She has significant experience as an executive leader, strategist, and researcher, and she is committed to using research to improve the safety and well-being of individuals, families, and communities.

Before joining Urban in this new capacity, Fontaine was vice president for criminal justice research at Arnold Ventures. She led high-impact investment strategies and oversaw the development of research agendas and research projects on community safety, policing, pretrial justice, and corrections that use rigorous social science methods to advance justice reform and racial equity.

Fontaine is also the inaugural executive director of the Black and Brown Collective for Community Solutions to Gun Violence, an organization of scholars committed to supporting community-driven solutions to gun violence prevention and equitable policy and practice change.

Fontaine previously worked at the Urban Institute leading multimethod research and evaluation projects on gun violence and community safety initiatives, policing reforms, and issues related to corrections and reentry. She has also held roles at the Pew Charitable Trusts and the National Institute of Justice. Fontaine received her bachelor’s degree in sociology and criminology from Villanova University and her doctoral degree in justice and public policy from American University.