Moneque Walker-Pickett

National Diversity Officer

Moneque Walker-Pickett is professor and associate chair of the Department of Criminal Justice at Saint Leo University. She is a 1994 initiate of the University of Miami Circle. Moneque holds a Bachelor of Arts with majors in sociology and Africana studies from the University of Miami. She earned her Juris Doctor (law) degree from the University of Florida and her Ph.D. in sociology, with a concentration in race and ethnic relations and criminology, from the University of Miami. Moneque’s multidisciplinary background in law and sociology guides her research interests in socio-legal scholarship exploring the intersectionality of race and ethnicity, gender, crime, and public policy.

Moneque was appointed the Society’s inaugural National Diversity Officer in 2020. Her current term on the board will conclude in June 2026.

Previously, Moneque was awarded a U.S. Presidential Management Fellowship. In this role, she was assigned to work with the Department of Labor’s Civil Rights Center and the Social Security Administration’s legal division in Washington, D.C. Moneque also worked on Capitol Hill for six months as a congressional fellow. Upon completing the fellowships, she founded her own general-practice law firm. A licensed attorney for more than 20 years, Moneque brings her work experience and passion for teaching to support student success in and out of the classroom. Using collaborative teaching methods and technology, she utilizes the flipped classroom model, encouraging student participation with an active learning approach.

Moneque is an active member of the Saint Leo University Circle. On campus, she is also an advisor/co-advisor to a number of student organizations, including the Alpha Phi Sigma Criminal Justice Honor Society, the Black Student Union, Sigma Lambda Gamma Sorority, and ACJA/LAE organization. Moneque, her husband, and two sons reside in Tampa, Fla.