Corrections_Today_May_June_2020_Vol.82_No.3

had been no similar activity in time before this, so Polson had to make a serious choice. She said that when they reached the threat warning system, she turned down the volume so she could tune out the noise and stay focused on the things that mattered most. “There are some times

when you need to complete the mission, to focus on that core mission, that you need to turn the volume. There are times where you need to tune out the noise,” she explained. “There are times when you need to focus on what matters the most.” Polson then explained what she considered the most important point of being a leader, which she called “the courage of ownership.” She said a leader must be bold and have the courage to make a difference. She said that, in her leadership positions in the military, she had to put the mission first, but always consider people. “When is it hardest to take on the courage of ownership?” Polson asked the audience. Polson revealed her own answer to the question, saying it was “in the face of [her] own failings.” She called the fear of failure another form of resistance that one has to face and fly through. “Where it matters most … is deep inside each of our hearts. It is deep inside our hearts that we find that grit,” she told the audience at the conclu- sion of her presentation. “Now we’re coming in for a landing. … In the Apache, just like any aircraft, on takeoff, into the wind, on landing, you turn that nose to face the wind, and when you use it the right way, that resistance will bring you home safely.” After Polson finished her speech, Victoria Meyers, the chair of the ACAAwards Commit- tee, took the stage to award four prestigious ACA awards. First, she presented the ACA Community Service Award to the Drug Education for Youth (DEFY) Program of Naval Consolidated Brig in Charleston, SC. Next, the Innovations in Correc- tions Award was presented to the Inmate Council

Program of Center for Council, which was accept- ed by Center for Council Executive Director Jared Seide and Outreach Associate Samuel Escobar, Jr. Next was the Medal of Valor award, which went to Correctional Officer Catherine Wilson of the Allred Unit in Iowa Park, Texas for her bravery in two incidents with violent inmates. Allred Unit Warden Jimmy Smith accepted the award on her behalf. Lastly, the Award of Merit went to Edward Matthews, an agribusiness truck driver for the Virginia Department of Corrections who saved five people from a car accident. After the awards were presented, ACAExecutive Director James A. Gondles Jr. congratulated all the awardees and promoted the 150 th Congress of Cor- rection set to be held in Cincinnati fromAugust 6-10.

— Alexander Carrigan

Corrections Today May/June 2020 — 83