
Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt, left, shown with graduate student Ellie Yates, spearheaded the creation of the Violence Reduction Initiative—a UTC research center designed to address violent crime in Chattanooga and beyond. Photo by Angela Foster.
For more than a decade as a police officer in Northwest Missouri, Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt patrolled neighborhoods plagued by poverty and violence—often finding himself more mentor than lawman.
“Most of these kids lacked a positive male role model,” he explained. “The minute they had someone in their life they didn’t want to disappoint, the cycle of crime often stopped.
“It’s not rocket science. It’s about treating people with decency and respect.”
Today, as a UC Foundation associate professor and head of the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Dierenfeldt has brought that same philosophy to academia. It is the cornerstone of the Violence Reduction Initiative (VRI)—a research center he spearheaded to address violent crime in Chattanooga and beyond.
Housed within UTC’s Criminal Justice department, the VRI represents a bold commitment to bridging the gap between academic research and real-world solutions.
“The establishment of the Violence Reduction Initiative places our program and University in a better position to address these concerns,” Dierenfeldt said. “Specifically, it will make us more competitive for external funding, encourage a higher level of community engagement, support student-faculty research collaboration, and put us in a position to produce research and policy that address timely, important and highly visible issues.”

UC Foundation Associate Professor Rick Dierenfeldt works with students in a criminology course.
The seeds for the VRI were planted shortly after Dierenfeldt joined the UTC faculty when—in 2020—he began working with the Chattanooga Police Department (CPD) to implement and evaluate the Scenic City Crime Gun Intelligence Center (CGIC).
Over three years, Dierenfeldt assisted the CPD by conducting statistical analysis, producing policy-driven technical reports and providing CGIC with new metrics that could be used to guide practices designed to reduce gun violence in Chattanooga.
A great deal was achieved during the three-year period, including a 27% decrease in firearm homicides, a 36% decrease in overall homicides and a 42% decrease in shooting victims.
One key innovation from the CGIC research was the reconceptualization of “case closure” metrics. Traditional practices often overlooked the role of firearms themselves in perpetuating crime. Dierenfeldt’s analysis revealed that many crime guns were used repeatedly in multiple incidents.
“The offenders had been apprehended, but the guns were still in circulation,” he explained.
His research inspired CPD to reopen 300 closed cases to locate and seize those firearms. The result? Fewer weapons on the streets and fewer opportunities for violence.
The success of the CGIC became a national model, earning the ATF’s Excellence in Crime Gun Intelligence Award and inspiring replication efforts in over 60 jurisdictions. Sgt. Josh May, a UTC alum who led the CGIC, shared Chattanooga’s success story across the country.
“I’ve never seen a practitioner with such a strong grasp of theory and methods,” Dierenfeldt said of May. “He understood the importance of data collection and analysis, and he took it upon himself to ensure it was done right.”
This success sparked a question that would ultimately lead to the creation of the VRI in 2024: How could UTC expand its reach to tackle violent crime on a broader scale?
“What we achieved in Chattanooga wasn’t part of a statewide trend,” Dierenfeldt said. ‘There was an opportunity here to expand our reach and partner with more agencies and service providers in the community to pursue more externally-funded partnerships and really embrace this idea of data-informed, evidence-based practice.
“What I ended up pitching to the University was that we could open a research center and use that to focus on relationships with community partners to seek external funding.”
The proposal, he said, gained rapid approval from UTC leadership—including Provost Jerold Hale, College of Arts and Sciences Dean Pam Riggs-Gelasco, Vice Chancellor for Research Reinhold Mann, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research Meredith Perry and Dean of the Graduate School Ethan Carver. He also credited Academic Affairs Director of Space Management Theresa Liedtka for facilitating the reallocation of office space needed to house the VRI.
“Full credit goes to them for seeing the value in what we were trying to do here and investing in it immediately. I’ve never seen anything move this fast,” Dierenfeldt said.
After getting the approval to move forward, Dierenfeldt and the VRI sought funding activity—and two collaborations were awarded federal grants.
First, Hamilton County Alternative Sentencing Programs—in partnership with a Criminal Justice team of Dierenfeldt, Dr. Andrew Denney, Dr. Gale Iles and Dr. Sherah Basham—was awarded an $844,294 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) as part of the Second Chance Act Smart Supervision Program.
The three-year project, titled the Recidivism Reduction Initiative (RRI), is designed to improve public safety by reducing recidivism rates among justice-involved individuals in Hamilton County’s misdemeanor supervision programs.
Recidivism is defined as the act of someone committing a crime again after having already been punished or gone through the justice system for a previous offense. It refers to how often people return to criminal behavior after being released from jail, prison or another form of correctional supervision.
The RRI, managed through Hamilton County’s Alternative Sentencing Programs, focuses on implementing evidence-based supervision strategies and providing essential services to participants. As the research partner, the Criminal Justice program provides ongoing analysis of program outcomes, including recidivism rates, compliance with supervision and the overall effectiveness of interventions offered to participants.
“This grant allows us to implement risk/needs assessments and a new incentive/consequence matrix,” Dierenfeldt said. “The initiative is about evidence-based, trauma-informed strategies for dealing with offenders, many of whom have experienced substance abuse or early childhood traumas, known as adverse childhood experiences. By addressing these needs, we hope to reduce recidivism and improve community safety.”
The RRI officially launched in January and runs through September 2027.
Shortly after learning that RRI had received funding, another award came through—a $1,999,187 grant from BJA for a partnership with the City of Chattanooga for the Chattanooga United to Reduce Violence (CURV) initiative.
CURV, led by the city’s Office of Community Safety and Gun Violence Prevention, seeks to reduce gun violence in high-crime, high-risk neighborhoods through evidence-based, community-focused strategies. The initiative includes expanding structured after-school activities for youth, providing trauma-informed mental health services, offering wraparound support for families and deploying violence interrupters.
“Violence is often concentrated in specific neighborhoods and among young people who lack access to structured, supervised activities,” Dierenfeldt said. “By addressing these root causes and providing meaningful support, CURV aims to reduce opportunities for victimization and offending.”
Dierenfeldt said the three-year grant will allow UTC researchers to assess the impact of CURV’s strategies and provide data-driven insights to inform future violence prevention efforts.
“The research will involve multiple faculty, graduate students and a postdoctoral scholar hired specifically for this project,” he said. “It is an incredible opportunity to demonstrate our capacity for quality research, inform policy and practice, and stand united with the city of Chattanooga to reduce violence in our community.”
The concept of “violence interrupters” was particularly innovative. Dierenfeldt described them as community members with ties to high-risk neighborhoods who are trained to identify and de-escalate potentially violent situations.
“Many of these individuals have histories with gang activity themselves, but that makes them credible messengers,” he said. “They know where this path leads and they can intervene before a situation escalates.”
In one striking example, a single retaliatory shooting in Chattanooga was linked to 22 additional violent incidents.
“What if you could diffuse it after that first one?” Dierenfeldt asked. “You have 22 shootings that don’t happen, lives that aren’t destroyed, families that aren’t devastated. That’s the power of this work.”

Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt (green shirt) has collaborated with numerous agencies since arriving at UTC.
A second-generation police officer and first-generation college student, Dierenfeldt’s first attempt at college ended during his sophomore year “because I couldn’t figure out what I was doing there.”
After a few years in the field, though, he went back to college—as a 26-year-old—to pursue an associate degree.
“After the first paper I wrote in the first class that I took—once they figured out I hadn’t plagiarized the thing—the professor pulled me aside to know what my future plans were,” Dierenfeldt recalled. “I said, ‘I’m getting my associate degree and I’m going to stay in the field.’
“He said, ‘No, you’re not. You’re going to do your bachelor’s, then you’re going to get your master’s and you’re going to get your Ph.D.’ The best thing I ever did was listen.”
Dierenfeldt went on to receive a bachelor’s degree from Missouri Western State University, a master’s degree from the University of Central Missouri and a doctoral degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock—where his dissertation was titled “Disentangling the effects of violent subculture and structure: A multi-level analysis of race-specific gun violence in urban U.S. counties.”
Dierenfeldt, who joined the UTC faculty in 2018, said his early experiences in law enforcement shaped his belief in the power of relationships to drive change.
“I will always miss the field aspects of it, working directly in the community and working with the kids,” he said. “That was my favorite part—getting them out of those lifestyles.”
He recounted how, as a young officer, he worked to build trust with at-risk youth in his district. By engaging with them, learning their names and offering his phone number for late-night calls, he created a network of trust that yielded tangible results.
“Crime went down 40% in my district that first year,” he said. “Who was committing it? Those kids. And then it stopped because they had someone they didn’t want to disappoint. This was not a problem that you had to arrest away; you had to build a relationship.
“Were you going to reach or save all of them? No. But could you make a dent? You’re darn right you could. I don’t care what anybody says; you can change the world. You do it every day by how you treat people.”
This philosophy, he said, is reinforced in his VRI approach. The initiative focuses on collaboration and accountability, bringing together diverse stakeholders to create lasting change.
Dierenfeldt said agencies that were once hesitant to work with academics have been reaching out for assistance.
“We’ve seen an incredible level of trust and interest from partners who want to address issues with evidence-based solutions,” he said. “This is a turning point for how the community views our role in criminal justice.”
He pointed to partnerships with groups like the Dr. Carol B. Berz Family Justice Center and the Fannie Mae Crumsey Foundation. The Family Justice Center, which focuses on reducing domestic violence, identified several funding opportunities with the VRI’s help. The Crumsey Foundation works to de-stigmatize mental health in underserved communities, particularly among young men.
“These collaborations expand our reach and allow us to tackle complex issues from multiple angles,” Dierenfeldt said. “We’re out in the community and we’re working with agencies, building bridges and showing what’s possible.”
Dierenfeldt’s approach also recognizes the importance of mentoring students. The VRI will become a platform for graduate assistants and postdoctoral researchers to engage in hands-on, impactful work.
“We’re training the next generation of researchers,” Dierenfeldt said. “They leave here with real-world experience, ready to contribute to communities across the country.”
The initiative’s success has already drawn attention from the UT System, which sees the VRI as a model for innovative, community-focused research.
“But this isn’t just about the research,” Dierenfeldt said. “It’s about making a difference. It’s about showing that evidence-based practices can save lives.”
Despite the progress, Dierenfeldt knows there are challenges ahead.
“Chattanooga still faces significant violence,” he said, “but the VRI is showing what’s possible when academics and practitioners work together.
“The support from the University and our community partners has been incredible. This is the kind of work that can inspire change—and we’re just getting started.”
Learn more
UTC announces launch of the Violence Reduction Initiative
Hamilton County and UTC receive $844,294 federal grant to support Recidivism Reduction Initiative
City of Chattanooga and UTC receive $2 million federal grant for CURV initiative
UTC professor, students helping Chattanooga Police decrease gun crimes

“We’ve seen an incredible level of trust and interest from partners who want to address issues with evidence-based solutions,” Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt said of the Violence Reduction Initiative. “This is a turning point for how the community views our role in criminal justice.”