Dr. Fred L. Cheesman II is a Principal Court Research Consultant with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC). He is an experienced researcher, research administrator, and policy-analyst specializing in juvenile justice and problem solving courts. Since joining NCSC in 1997, major areas of project work included (1) Evaluations of juvenile blended sentencing in Minnesota, Ohio, and Vermont; (2) cost-benefit analysis (e.g., Midtown Manhattan and Red Hook Community Courts); (3) evaluation of risk assessment instrument for low-level offenders in Virginia; (4) performance measurement of drug courts (juvenile and adult), statewide and locally; (5) evaluations of juvenile and adult problem-solving courts; and (6) the evaluation of the DC District Court’s Juvenile Social Services Unit.
In 2014, he teamed with Gary Waint, Acting State Court Administrator of Missouri, to conduct workshops on a framework for effective juvenile justice intervention and juvenile diversion for the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States in Grenada, St. Vincent’s, St. Kitts, Dominica, Antigua, and St. Lucia. Prior to joining NCSC, Dr. Cheesman served on the faculty of the University of Baltimore (UB) with a joint appointment in the criminal justice and public policy divisions, also serving as a research associate with the Schaefer Center for Public Policy. At UB and also as a visiting professor at Indiana University, he taught juvenile justice courses. Prior to this, he served as a researcher and systems analyst for 15 years with the Ohio Department of Youth Services, where he developed population forecasts for the agency and conducted program evaluations. In this capacity, he worked extensively with Ohio juvenile courts.