Rachel Bowns

Rachel Bowns is a research associate I with the Georgia Health Policy Center’s Center of Excellence for Children’s Behavioral Health, where she supports workforce development. She brings experience working with currently and formerly incarcerated individuals, children and families involved in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, victims of crime, and adults and children with mental health symptoms and diagnoses. She has previously worked in research settings within psychology, criminology, and social work on young adult alcohol problems, mass shooting events, and prison reentry services, as well as in service provision for victims of crime, at-risk families, and individuals experiencing homelessness.

Bowns’ research interests span criminology and the criminal justice system broadly. She uses a social work lens to look at trauma and systems such as policing, prosecution, and corrections. Additionally, Bowns is interested in victimization and victim services, families impacted by the criminal legal system, and criminological theory.