By COMMISSIONER MARC ANTRIM Alaska Department of Corrections December 20, 2005

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1 By COMMISSIONER MARC ANTRIM Alaska Department of Corrections December 20, 2005 WELCOME TO THE COMMISSIONER S CORNER: Thanks for continuing to check in with this column. I will continue to feature information on department issues. If you have ideas, issues or suggestions from institutions or field offices, please submit them to Richard_Schmitz@correct.state.ak.us or call SEASON S GREETINGS: This season is always special for its close ties to family and friends. I d like to offer my best wishes for a Merry Christmas, -- or Happy Hanukkah and a prosperous New Year. As you travel during this season of celebration, please take extra care on the highways or while recreating outdoors. LEI TUPOU, TED KINNEY TAKE ON NEW CHALLENGES: With Mike Addington moving on to new challenges, I named Leitoni Tupou as Director of the Division of Institutions. Lei has served as Special Assistant since 2002, and previously worked as an institutional Probation Officer. In 1996 he was promoted to Correctional Officer III and in 2000 he accepted a position as a Probation Officer III with the Board of Parole. Tupou, who was born and raised on the Pacific island nation of Tonga, began his career with the department in 1988 in Juneau as a Correctional Officer. Tupou will work in Anchorage. He is married with six children, age 2 through 22. In addition, I have asked Ted Kinney to lead the department s initial planning for a possible large facility in the Mat-Su Borough, as well as for other expansion projects that have been authorized. Kinney will work out of the Anchorage Central Office. Most recently, Ted served the department as the Facilities Manager II, overseeing construction and deferred maintenance projects. Kinney, who came to Alaska in 1979, is married with three children and four grandchildren. Page 1 of 6 Commissioner s Corner December 20, 2005

2 POINT MACKENZIE INMATES MAKE TOYS, REINDEER: For the past few months, inmates turned a room at Point Mackenzie Correctional Farm into Santa s Workshop. The result: a little over 500 small wooden toys cars, trucks, puzzles, ducks, for example which will be distributed to the new Valley Hospital and Providence Hospital s Children s Ward the U.S. Marines for its Toys for Tots program. Last week a box of the toys were sent to a women s shelter in Emmonak. Coordinating the program is Correctional Officer Ned Entwisle, who collects wood scraps from the nearby Spenard Builders Supply truss plant and helps oversee the fabrication of per day. Superintendent Joe Schmidt said the inmates accepted a challenge to build 1,000 toys. These little wood toys come with a lifetime guarantee! Inmates also built three life size wooden reindeer using pallets as raw material. The reindeer come with detachable antlers and, at the nose, a socket for a red light bulb. POINT MACKENZIE TAKES ON COMMUNITY PROJECTS: The Point Mackenzie Correctional Farm has taken on a number of communityrelated projects. An agreement between the department, the Food Bank of Alaska and the Alaska Railroad provides for a program to use inmate labor and Point Mac facilities to salvage and process rail-killed moose meat. So far, two moose have been successfully salvaged. Inmate workers will bundle firewood for state park campgrounds, cut brush along roads near the prison farm in order to provide improved visibility for motorists, and build display shelving for a transportation museum in Wasilla. Page 2 of 6 Commissioner s Corner December 20, 2005

3 INMATES COUNCILS, CLUBS ADOPT VILLAGE OF SAVOONGA: Inmates at Hiland Mountain, Wildwood and Spring Creek have teamed up to become Santa for the village of Savoonga.Last week, one wall of the gym (see pictures) at HMCC was lined, head high, with new and hand-crafted gifts for the residents of the Saint Lawrence Island community. Close to 80 hand-sewn blankets were neatly stacked one for each elder in the community. In addition, the inmates arranged for purchase of shop equipment, entertainment items, GPS devises and hand-held radios, books, DVDs, educational supplies and clothing. Northern Air Cargo and Bering Air have volunteered to bring the donated items to village in time for a Christmas celebration. Most of the money was raised and donated by inmate councils and Native Culture clubs. Corrections Officer Steve Imoe coordinated the effort. Page 3 of 6 Commissioner s Corner December 20, 2005

4 AMCC MARKS 20 TH ANNIVERSARY WITH FLAG POLE DEDICATION: The 20 th anniversary of the Anvil Mountain Correctional Center was marked by the dedication of a new flag pole and the reading of a proclamation from Governor Frank Murkowski declaring Nov as Alaska Correctional Facilities Week. Superintendent Rita Anderson and I were joined at a dedication ceremony by Nome Mayor Denise Michel and an honor guard made up of Correctional Officers, Army National Guard members and Sgt. Rodney Johnson, representing the Alaska State Troopers. In brief remarks to the crowd, Superintendent Anderson explained the genesis of the AMCC flag pole. I told my staff there was no money for a flag pole, Anderson said. But they brought a flag from home, put it on a wooden pole and HONOR GUARD: L-R: Correctional Officers Buchanan, Dunham, Shill, Koweluk, Evans and Tolan stand with Commissioner Antrim, Superintendent Anderson and Trooper Sgt. Johnson as the AMCC flag pole is formally dedicated attached it to a storage building by the garage. The next morning I saw the flag flying atop the storage unit and I was reminded of the sacrifices made by our citizen soldiers. I felt a little embarrassed that I hadn t worked harder to dedicate funds for a proper flag pole. Superintendent Anderson deserves kudos for her strong effort to recruit staff locally and to fulfill the department s mission to protect the public. Page 4 of 6 Commissioner s Corner December 20, 2005

5 RECRUITMENT DRIVE MOVES IN NEW DIRECTIONS: The message that Corrections is a great place to find a great job is being put in front Alaskans as they set down for their morning bowl of cereal. Matanuska Maid Dairy began distribution in early December throughout the railbelt and communities served by the road system in Southcentral Alaska, including Valdez and Cordova. Our ad will be on every size of yellow Mat-Maid milk carton wherever Mat-Maid is sold until early January. People use more milk during the holidays and sometimes have milk containers out on the table and counter for a few minutes while they eat cereal or mash potatoes. The department chose this non-traditional form of recruitment advertising for several reasons, for example: 1) to promote awareness and discussion about Corrections; 2) the unusual location of the ad should catch the attention of Alaskans, and, 3) cost effectiveness for the number of households and individuals reached. If you re at the movies, you ll probably notice our ads on the silver screen. In addition, DOC is sponsoring statewide news on KIMO (Channel 13) as well as on other TV and radio stations. As the department continues to focus on recruitment, it is important to acknowledge and appreciate that DOC employees are the most effective recruiters. Your image in the community and with friends and family is the most powerful recruitment statement that can be made. Thank you for referring people to Corrections as a profession and for making the Alaska Department of Corrections the kind of place where others want to work. CORRECTIONS CONTRIBUTES IN A BIG WAY TO SHARE: The annual SHARE campaign has wrapped up although you can still donate and the Department of Corrections has nearly doubled its participation from As of December 16, DOC accounted for 103 contributors with a total pledge of $21,006. (35 contributors were from Palmer Correctional Center). As an incentive, all contributors were placed in a drawing for 50 pounds of Point Mac potatoes, while the first five get a home-grown frozen turkey as well. The 20 winners were: (potatoes and turkey) Mark Newell, Harold Faust, Linda Cunningham, Cindy Betts and Lorrel Ludy; (potatoes only) Mary Howerter, John Atwell, Mark Lockwood, Suzanne Yakal, Jimmy Williams, Lee Pritchett, Diana Darnell, Mary Collins, Kelly Hyden, Kevin Robinson, John Mapes, Maria Lobell Garcia, Sherry Appel, Sharon Wessels and Dan Roberts. Page 5 of 6 Commissioner s Corner December 20, 2005

6 EMPLOYMENT UPDATE: Employment statistics for September, October and November are as follows: Correctional Officers Probation Officers Conditional Offers 33 2 New Hires 19 3 Transfers In 13 2 Promotions 3 0 Resignations 6 3 Retirements 8 0 Page 6 of 6 Commissioner s Corner December 20, 2005