Jason Campos

Dr. Jason Azriel Campos is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Northern Colorado. Prior to joining UNC in 2025, he received his Ph.D. in Sociology from Texas A&M University. His research lies at the intersections of race, place, and law, with a focus on how communities with histories of crime and gang violence are shaped by surveillance, stigma, and policing.

His current projects examine (1) how narratives of crime and violence shape community perceptions of safety and relationships with police, (2) how racialized policing practices affect Latina/o/x neighborhoods undergoing demographic and structural change, and (3) how victimization and gang affiliation influence reporting decisions and trust in law enforcement. To pursue this agenda, Dr. Campos employs ethnographic observation, qualitative interviews, and statistical analyses to triangulate findings and center the voices of marginalized communities. In previous research, he contributed to the Mexican Reintegration Project, a study affiliated with the Texas A&M University School of Law that examined the causes and consequences of deportation for Mexican nationals, particularly those with prior contact with the criminal justice system, and the challenges they face during reintegration.

He has co-authored publications in Sociology Compass and the Routledge International Handbook of Critical Gang Studies.  His work has been supported by nationally competitive awards, including the American Sociological Association’s Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant (DDRIG) and the ICPSR Diversity Fellowship. He is also a recipient of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) 2025 Doctoral Summit fellowship.

• PHD: Texas A&M University
• MS: Texas A&M University
• Undergraduate: California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

• 2025 – Present, Assistant Professor, Criminology & Criminal Justice, University of Northern Colorado
• 2025 – 2025, Graduate Instructor, Department of Sociology, Texas A&M University
• 2018 – 2021, Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Sociology, Texas A&M University

Race and Crime, Victimization, Policing, Urban Inequality, Gangs, Immigration, Restorative Justice, and Mixed Methods Research.

• Durán, R. J., & Campos, J. A. (2021). The war on gangs and gangsters: The Latino/a experience with settler colonialism. In D. C. Brotherton & R. J. Gude (Eds.), Routledge international handbook of critical gang studies (pp. 271-283). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429462443.
• Durán, R.J., & Campos, J.A. (2020). Gangs, gangsters, and the impact of settler colonialism on the Latina/o experience. Sociology Compass, 14(3), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12765.
• Durán, R. J., Campos, J. A., & Nelson, B. (2020). Knoxville gang update: Class of 2016. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Department of Sociology. https://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/188841.
• Durán, R. J., Campos, J. A., & Bordt, M. (2020). Southern New Mexico/Texas gang update: Class of 2012. New Mexico State University, Department of Criminal Justice. https://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/188840.