Corrections_Today_Spring_2025_Vol.87_No.1

PAST PRESIDENT’S CORNER

After some reflection I asked:

who is ACA now?

ACA is primarily a volunteer organization. That means, many of our functions are designed for and carried out by an “army” of cor rections volunteers. We show up at the Congress of Corrections in mass to convene, discuss, exchange ideas, develop networks and share resources all in the name of continu ous learning. ACA is the vehicle which brings us together to strive for excellence in serving our mission to deliver safety for our We also do these activities throughout the year, in addition to the day-to-day work done each day to meet our respective missions. And we do this why? I think as corrections profes sionals we are driven by our passion for always trying to do the best work, always trying to better ourselves and how we practice our profession. As corrections professionals we care, we are proud of what we do and we are proud of our mission. We provide a vital function for the good of our society. ACA is the vehicle which brings us together to strive for excellence in serving our mission to deliver safety for our fellow corrections professionals and the public.

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fellow corrections professionals and the public. Our members, our army of vol unteers, brought together by ACA is who we are. Within each of us and our ex periences, we have certain areas of expertise or “passions.” Reflecting on how I am spending my time in retirement, I narrowed down my most glaring passions at this stage in my career: I. Excellence in corrections leadership Very simply: Leadership mat ters. Most of us started our careers working our way up from the bot tom rungs of the leadership ladder. Along the way, we have experienced great leaders who brought out the best in us, believed in us and helped us develop into better people and better leaders. Thank goodness for those who have experienced that kind of leader. We might have experienced the other kind: the overbearing, negative, critical and dictatorial leader. One of

my mentors used to say: “Our folks on the line cannot choose their lead ers. We as managers owe it to these folks to select, train and support the kind of leader we would want as our boss. And we have a responsibility to remove them from a leadership position if they are not suited for it”. ACA has and continues to serve this passion to support and develop the next generation of corrections leaders with workshops, summits, professional training opportuni ties, networking and mentoring. ACA along with affiliate organiza tions and meaningful partnerships, is doing this nationally and internationally. II. Supporting a research based and balanced juvenile justice system While I spent 32 years working in the adult systems in three states, I spent the last eight years focused on juvenile corrections. I learned a tremendous amount from this experience.

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Spring 2025 | Corrections Today

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