Joseph Richardson, Jr.

Dr. Joseph Richardson, Jr. is the MPower Professor of African-American Studies, Medical Anthropology and Epidemiology at the University of Maryland, and previously held the Joel and Kim Feller Endowed Professorship. He holds a Joint Appointment in the Department of Anthropology (Medical) and a Secondary Appointment in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. In 2023, he was elected to the National Academy of Medicine. He earned his PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Rutgers University and his bachelor's degree in African and African-American Studies from the University of Virginia, and completed post-doctoral fellowships at the University of Chicago and the Morehouse School of Medicine/UNC. Dr. Richardson is Executive Director of the Transformative Research and Applied Violence Intervention Lab (TRAVAIL) and leads PROGRESS, UMD's multidisciplinary gun violence research initiative. His research focuses on gun violence, trauma, and community violence interventions for high-risk Black boys and young Black men; the role of structural violence in their lives; the intersection of the juvenile justice, criminal legal, and healthcare systems; and digital storytelling as a vehicle for narrative change. He is the Founding Co-Director of the Capital Region Violence Intervention Program (CAP-VIP) and Co-Chair of the DC Violence Fatality Review Committee. His work has appeared in the American Journal of Public Health, Social Science and Medicine, Journal of Urban Health, and other peer-reviewed journals, and has been featured in outlets including PBS NewsHour, NPR, The Washington Post, and The Guardian.