Several individuals who have demonstrated dedication and excellence in the corrections profession throughout their careers were recognized during an Awards Luncheon held in conjunction with JAILCON22 Western Regional Conference on Wednesday, June 8th, 2022, at the Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. Sheriff Mark Dannels (Cochise County, AZ) along with representatives from each Arizona county's sheriff's office honored recipients of the Arizona Sheriffs' Association Awards, followed by NIJO Executive Director, Tate McCotter, who presented awards to the recipients of the JAILCON22 Western Region Corrections Professionals Awards.  McCotter also recognized agencies and individuals who had earned NIJO National Accreditation and Professional Certification.

NIJO wishes to extend our congratulations to the following award recipients.

ARIZONA SHERIFFS' ASSOCIATION DETENTION OFFICER OF THE YEAR

 

Officer Octavio Ramirez Yuma County Sheriff's Office, AZ

ARIZONA SHERIFFS' ASSOCIATION MARY HYNEK MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR

 

Megan Kennedy Cochise County Sheriff's Office, AZ

ARIZONA SHERIFFS' ASSOCIATION SUPERVISOR OF THE YEAR

 

Sergeant Amy Miller Coconino County Sheriff's Office, AZ

 

ARIZONA SHERIFFS' ASSOCIATION DETENTION ADMINISTRATOR OF THE YEAR

 

Commander Ernie Garcia Navajo County Sheriff's Office, AZ

 

JAILCON22 WESTERN REGION CORRECTIONS PROFESSIONALS AWARD DETENTION FACILITY INNOVATION

 

Washington County Sheriff's Office, TX

  The mental health population inside our jails is not going down anytime soon. Recently, Washington County Sheriff’s Office developed a new mental health policy and program.  The system works by first screening the inmate, which is reviewed by jail staff, forensic case manager, and justice of the peace. The inmate receives services based on their response. If an inmate needs services immediately after intake, then inmate with be screen within the hour. Currently 10 inmates (fluxuating dependent on population) are seen by telehealth psychologists. The telehealth counseling program is partnered with Texas A&M University to help assist with cost of the health services. From the Sheriff “Chief Hensley has literally taken a non-existent policy, developed a strong mental health policy, solicited and was eventually able to contract with Texas A&M University for Telemental Health Services”.

JAILCON22 WESTERN REGION CORRECTIONS PROFESSIONALS AWARD DEDICATION TO EXCELLENCE

 

Corporal Gretchen Ulrickson Lewis & Clark County Sheriff's Office, MT

  Corporal Ulrickson has taken on a rather amazing mentoring role in our detention center since she started here in 2018.  She is fair, firm, and consistent with the inmates and is a very conscientious Field Training Officer.  She treats all officers with respect and as a trainer and leader, she sets the bar high. Corporal Ulrickson recently became a CPR instructor and had to organize three classes for our officers.  This was no easy task as the website for ordering and setting up classes was not very user friendly.  After many hours of going through the process, she was able to instruct many of our staff, at various levels of competency. Corporal Ulrickson has been a real trooper when it comes to overtime.  She will always answer any calls from the detention center and has come in on her days off whenever asked.  This officer has the most logged overtime hours in our facility. Corporal Ulrickson has gone through all online training that she has been assigned from the National Institute for Jail Operations.  With all this training, she has brought us great ideas and always tries to include anyone in the area in the training sessions she watched while working.

NIJO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S AWARD

The NIJO Executive Director's Award recognizes extraordinary service to the detention and corrections field by an individual based on leadership, knowledge and contributions to the corrections profession. 

Rob Yantis Jail Commander, Pennington County Sheriff's Office, SD

 

NIJO PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION

The National Institute for Jail Operations developed the Professional Certification Program in response to the need to provide a respected national certification for individuals looking for a process that involved legal-based curriculum by an organization which supports and defends their agencies’ worthy goals and objectives.   NIJO Professional Certification is a professional designation - earned not issued - for jail and detention officers, supervisors, administrators and sheriffs who have demonstrated to possess the requisite understanding, knowledge, skills, experience and abilities to function to a specific level.  Achieving NIJO Certification is a significant accomplishment and reflects intense training, effort, experience and comprehension proving that an individual confidently knows and can follow clearly established laws and procedures in fulfilling his or her duties within a correctional facility.

NIJO ACCREDITATION

NIJO Accreditation is an established process for correctional administrators to verify and be recognized nationally as compliant to what the law requires to run a constitutionally safe facility.  As the only such accreditation in the country, NIJO promulgates over 600 Legal-Based Guidelines^TM specific to each state, to ensure that detention and correctional facilities comply with current legal requirements applicable to each state, circuit court and federal rulings and statutes.  Achieving accreditation is not a walk in the park.  It requires legal-based policies and procedures, documentation and consistency on all levels.

Pinal County Sheriff's Office, AZ

Pinal County Sheriff's Office was the first county in the entire country to achieve reaccreditation Level I status – the highest that can be awarded by NIJO. Since their initial accreditation in 2012, Pinal County Detention Facility has worked diligently to keep its policies and ongoing operational practices current and compliant to the law and the Arizona Legal-Based Guidelines amidst intense budget cutbacks, depleted staff, and numerous other challenges. Pinal County SO is currently working to achieve their Year 2 Accreditation Requirements for a Level I accreditation.  Sheriff Mark Lamb, Chief Matt Hendricks and the entire Pinal County Sheriff’s Office and Detention staff were recognized for their continued excellence in maintaining accreditation at their facility.

Congratulations to all of these outstanding and dedicated professionals and their agencies.  You are the unsung heroes of law enforcement.  We appreciate you and are dedicated to providing legal-based training and resources for the employees of jails and detention facilities across the country.

 

You may also be interested in: JAILCON22 Western Regional Conference Summary