New crim prof says he owes accomplishments to life experiences
Dr. Laurence French is probably one of the most accomplished men you’ll ever meet.
He has 270 publications, 15 of them books. He is a licensed clinical psychiatrist, has a Ph.D in sociology, has worked with minorities for the past 40 years and he is an ex-United States Marine – to name a few of his accomplishments.
And now he can add St. Thomas University’s Endowed Chair of Criminology to the list.
French was born in 1941 and grew up in Suncook, New Hampshire, a small town on the Maramack River north of Manchester. French said growing up in Suncook influenced his career choices.
“Growing up in that little community, we had workers that came down from Quebec. So we always had this sort of international influx,” he said. “We were always in contact with our relatives in Quebec and other French-Canadian communities in New England. So I’ve got this flavour for working with different cultures and that sort of excited me.”
When he was 17, French joined the United States Marine Corps. French said joining the Marines was the second most important thing that ever happened to him – next to being born. He said the experience had an impact on his career.
“There was this raw discipline which I really needed at that young age,” French said. “Then there was the exposure. I got to work with African-Americans and Hispanics that I probably never would have been exposed to before.”
French said working with and under the authority of people of different races helped him become the person he is today.
“When I started out, all my officers, non-commissioned officers, and all my crew were African-Americans,” French said. “They treated me well and I think that helped alleviate any further prejudices. When I was growing up in New Hampshire, it was probably one of the whitest states in the U.S.”
French recently spent nine months in Bosnia and Serbia as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Sarajevo.
“I was very excited to be a Fulbright Scholar, especially being assigned to the University of Sarajevo which is a predominately Muslim section of Bosnia,” French said. “I’ve been working at conferences and doing research in that area since the late 1990s in eastern and southern Europe but I never had a chance to go to Sarajevo until this time. It was a very rewarding experience.”
But of all of his accomplishments, French said that seeing his students succeed and working with Native Americans has been his most rewarding experience.
“If you can influence and learn from a few good students, then I think you come out of this with the ultimate reward. Every university I’ve taught at, I’ve always had quality students. We stay in contact and they’ve all done well and that’s the most rewarding thing,” French said. “Also, I’ve worked with Native Americans for the last 40 years. You learn from their life experiences. They may not have a college degree, but they are very intelligent.”
While at STU, French will be busy with presentations and working on his next book. He is also teaching a course titled North American Native Justice, a field he has been working in since the 1970’s.
French is pleased with his decision to apply for his position at STU.
“I think it’s a very gentile environment,” French said. “I see a lot of commonality between New Brunswick and New England. So far it’s been a very pleasant experience.”
