Vera Institute of Justice

Nico was a research associate at the Center on Youth Justice. He worked on the Young Adults in Jail project, that evaluated the new Young Adult Unit at Rikers Island. Nico also conducted research in the UK as a Marshall Scholar for over two years. While in London, he explored issues concerning violence and collective memory, focusing on the Salvadoran Civil War, race, gender, and film. In Liverpool, Nico worked with RAPAR (Refugees and Asylum Participatory Action Research), examining the effects of detention and contact with police in Northern England on people seeking asylum in the UK. Prior to his work in the UK, Nico conducted research in New York City regarding adolescent exposure to violence, youth involvement in gangs and organized crime, and perception of crime and policing in the South Bronx. He has also served as a John Jay – Vera fellow at Common Justice, and worked as an educational advocate for Community Connections for Youth in the Bronx.
Nico holds an Msc from the London School of Economics and Political Science in Gender, Media, and Culture, an MA from the University of Liverpool in Research Methods in Sociology and Social Policy, and a BA from the CUNY Baccalaureate Program at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY, in Psychology of Juvenile Delinquency and International Criminology.