Corrections_Today_Winter_2024-2025_Vol.86_No.4

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, MEMBERSHIP & ENGAGEMENT

Three primary reasons to join ACA

By Marlene Braxton

This summer, it was my privilege to represent the American Correc tional Association at a week-long advanced leadership training in rural Virginia. The seasoned instructors were well-prepared and enthusias tic to share their knowledge with the Correctional professionals who qualified to participate in the class. Attendees demonstrated their eager ness to gain all they could from the opportunity, having had previous experience with our course offerings. New to the world of corrections, my role as the ACA representative was to support the instructors and students in any way needed. But I took the chance to watch and learn. In this atmosphere, the top three reasons for ACA membership be came evident. The Association is serious about professional development for career-focused individuals. A diverse group of attendees from all areas of corrections such as pris ons, probation, parole, and juvenile corrections assembled for instruc tion on leadership development, which included a brief history of ACA and the first 170 years of organized corrections, rehab, and criminal justice. (Because context is everything.) The attendees learned techniques and tools for conflict

management, team development, and departmental organization among other modules. Based on the feedback, the Association’s approach to professional develop ment did not disappoint. That is no surprise. Instructors, Wanza Jackson-Mitchell, a Retired Warden, and Amanda Moon, a Bureau Chief for Operational Compliance, pos sessed a combined knowledge base of over half a century. They are a significant resource for professional development at ACA. Each module made room for real world examples of how the facilitation principles would play out. The lived experiences shared by the instructors not only enhanced their own credibility, but their examples encouraged the attendees for practical and dupli catable application. You will have that level of leadership consistently as a member of ACA. Networking and outreach Networking opportunities to connect with other corrections professionals and affiliates that serve our cause are plentiful. The students in Virginia met colleagues they had never seen before and acquainted themselves with others

for the first time. At the beginning of the week, I observed attendees that did not speak much or engage in role-playing exercises. But by midweek, they were sharing mean ingful exchanges and best practices beyond their assigned groups to the entire room. As I walked around their stations, I learned so much about the corrections profession and the individuals that compose it. I even got an invitation to next year’s garden show at the training facility. Networking with colleagues on an interpersonal level can en hance a member’s career path and lifestyle exponentially. ACA will launch an online social platform called ACAConnect to expand member networking opportunities internationally.

The attendee’s commitment to leading corrections profession als was obvious from day one. Within the training were individuals who are passionate about ethical

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