José Luis Morín is a Professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (CUNY) in the Department of Latin American and Latinx Studies (LLS).  A faculty member at John Jay College since 1998, his areas of academic specialization include domestic and international criminal justice, civil rights and international human rights law, Latinx studies, and Latin American studies.  He is editor of Latinos and Criminal Justice: An Encyclopedia (2016), selected by Library Journal as one of the “Best Reference Titles of 2016.”  He is also author of Latino/a Rights and Justice in the United States: Perspectives and Approaches (2^nd edition, 2009). Professor Morín’s many other publications include “Latinx Communities, the Criminal Justice System, and Literature” (Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Literature, 2020), “The Social Condition of Stateside Puerto Ricans: Critical Needs and Policy Implications” (CENTRO Journal of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, 2012), and “Latinas/os and US Prisons: Trends and Challenges” (Latino Studies, 2008). 

Professor Morín has held numerous administrative positions within the City University of New York.  From August 2011 through January 2014, Professor Morín served as the founding Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost of Stella and Charles Guttman Community College.  As the second highest ranking administrator at Guttman, he was responsible for establishing and developing both academic and student affairs at this new college dedicated to innovation and high-impact, student-centered practices.  During his tenure as Provost, the college produced a 92% retention rate from fall 2012 to spring 2013 and a 75% retention rate from fall 2012 to fall 2013.

From 2007 to 2009, Professor Morín served as Interim Dean of Undergraduate Studies at John Jay College and spearheaded many new initiatives, including the Vera Fellows Program, the Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship Program, the annual Celebration of Student Research event, the Kaplan Leadership Program, the El Diario Prisoner Reentry Fellowship, and the John Jay Subway Series to assist incoming students transition to college.  During the 2006-2007 academic year, at the behest of Chancellor Matthew Goldstein, he established a new CUNY-wide Latino Faculty Recruitment Initiative and served as its Interim Director.  Prior to that, from July 2000 to August 2007, he served as chairperson of the Latin American and Latinx Studies Department at John Jay College, rebuilding and revitalizing what was originally known as the Puerto Rican Studies Department. He served again as department chair from August 2016 to August 2022.

Prior to coming to CUNY, he was a visiting professor at the Center for Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, where he taught a course on Indigenous Peoples’ rights and international law. Professor Morín also served many years as an international human rights and civil rights litigator and advocate with organizations, such as the Center for Constitutional Rights and the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund (now known as LatinoJustice). A graduate of Columbia University and New York University School of Law, Professor Morín has recieved many honors and awards over the years. He was one of ten individuals selected nationwide for the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU)-Kellogg Leadership Fellows Program (2005-2006) and he is recipient of the 2007 “El Award” for outstanding contribution to the Latino community, presented by the El Diario/La Prensa, the oldest Spanish-language newspaper in the United States, among the other honors.