JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FACULTY & STAFF
The faculty for the Bachelor of Arts in Justice, and Master's Degree in Criminal Justice Management and Administration, represent unique and extensive experience in the areas each of us teach. In addition to the faculty currently in the Department on-campus, instructors are sought throughout the country who have established themselves with special knowledge and expertise. Thus, a candidate for the Degrees will have access to a wide range of instructors with varying backgrounds and strengths.
David Blurton, Department Chair
(907) 474-6506
dmblurton@alaska.edu
Dr. Blurton received his Law Degree from the University of Montana after obtaining a Bachelor's Degree in Physics. He has worked as a private attorney and while no longer actively practicing he still is a member of the Alaska Bar.
Dr. Blurton has had extensive experience in Rural Alaska communities and publishes in legal and social science journals on topics pertinent to rural Alaska and Alaskan Natives. His areas of instruction are Substantive and Procedural Law, Rural Justice, and Legal Aspects of Justice Administration. Dr. Blurton is an active outdoorsman and enjoys all of Alaska's recreational opportunities.
Mike Daku
(907) 474-5717
Professor Daku serves as the Coordinator of the Graduate Program. As a member of the Justice Faculty, his areas of teaching and expertise have included Juvenile Delinquency, Corrections, Program Management, and Substance Abuse issues. He has lived and worked in Fairbanks since 1978, and has extensive experience in the management/supervision of offender-based treatment programs dealing with both adults and juveniles. He is also an avid outdoorsman and runner.
Brian Jarrett
(907) 474-6790
Professor Jarrett is a lawyer and professional mediator and abitrator in both the United States and Canada. He also holds a Ph.D. in Sociology. His interests include Mediation, Arbitration Dispute Systems Design (DSD), Restorative Practices and Therapeutic Jurisprudence (TJ). In recent years he has originated work in Integral Mediation, which promotes interdisciplinary practices in mediation. His practice ranges from work with local communities to international organizations. In both his written work and classroom teaching, Professor Jarrett works to bridge theory and practice in the field of Dispute Resolution.
Jeff May
(907) 474-5715
Professor May received his Law Degree from the University of Montana. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Justice and Master’s Degree in Justice Administration earned from this University. Originally from Montana, Jeff moved to Alaska in 2000. Before joining the faculty Jeff worked as a law clerk for Fairbanks Superior Court Judge Mark I. Wood. Jeff continues to engage in law practice as his University schedule permits. Jeff currently teaches courses in Justice Ethics, Criminal Law, Procedural Law, and civil liability concerns in justice administration. Jeff’s free time is filled with spending time with his family and the outdoors. His hobbies include camping, hunting, and fishing.
Larry Roberts
(907) 474-1913
Larry’s academic and professional background includes direct clinical, administrative, and teaching experience in the fields of community mental health, substance abuse treatment and prevention, cultural attunement and diversity, community and program development, adult learning and teaching, and behavioral health workforce development. He has lived and worked in Alaska since 1982 with most of that time in rural and frontier communities including over 15 years in Tok and 6 years in Bethel . His present assignment under the UAF Justice Program is with the Alaska Rural Behavioral Health Training Academy where he coordinates the work-force development project in the Norton Sound Region, directs the annual Lily Arctic Institute on Innovations & Excellence in Teaching conference in Fairbanks, and helps coordinate rural training activities for the Geriatric Education Program for much of the interior, western, and northern Alaska. He holds a M.Ed. in Counseling from Texas Christian University and is a Ph.D. candidate of psychology at North Central University . He is an active member of the Pathways Into Health organization and network, the National Association of Rural Mental Health, the University of Alaska Behavioral Health Alliance , and the DELTA Task force on the prevention of Intimate Partner Violence.
Gary Copus (Emeritus)
Dr. Copus received his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri, Columbia campus. He also holds a Bachelor's Degree in Biology from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Master's in Criminology from Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, Texas. Dr. Copus has conducted research at both the national and local levels. His research interest is currently focused on questions of Native Alaskans who are imprisoned in the State Department of Corrections. Teaching areas are introduction to justice, research methods, police problems, criminology, and public policy of crime control. Dr. Copus is also active in the aviation community as a private pilot, ground school instructor for the Community College and flight instructor.
Jeff Bumgarner (Master's Degree Program Only)
Dr. Jeff Bumgarner is a licensed peace officer and police firearms instructor with 11 years experience in federal and local law enforcement. He is also an officer in the United States Army Reserve. He holds an MPA in Public Administration from Northern Illinois University and a Ph.D. in Human Resource Development from the University of Minnesota. Previously he was a faculty member of the Department of Criminal Justice at Minnesota State University where he taught policing and management related courses. In addition to his position as a graduate faculty member in the Justice Department at UAF, he is currently a faculty member of the Department of Criminal Justice at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, TX.