Charitable Campaign Starts
 The 2024 Missouri State Employees Charitable Campaign (MSECC) is now underway! This annual unified fundraising effort gives state employees the chance to make donations to their favorite charitable organizations through payroll deductions or one-time gifts. Pledge a payroll deduction using the ESS portal, paper pledge card or credit card platform.
At the Sept. 12 Central Office department kickoff event, corrections campaign organizers will announce the three organizations selected to benefit from our team's fundraising events. Meanwhile, take a look at the list of the nearly 600 charitable organizations participating in the campaign.
The campaign runs through Tuesday, Oct. 31.
Department Represents in Sedalia
 The Missouri Department of Corrections made a strong showing at the 2023 Missouri State Fair Aug. 10-20. Department recruiters mingled with fair-goers, distributed corrections-branded giveaways and talked with prospective team members about the advantages of a career in corrections. They also visited with old friends retired from the department and made new friends, including fair icon and mascot Bartholomule.
Nick Todaro, a sergeant at Algoa Correctional Center, has been named employee of the month for August 2023.
Todaro looks out for the wellbeing of his team. A fellow officer had been struggling mentally and emotionally for a few days when Todaro and another staff member responded to a call in the officer’s unit. After managing the situation at hand, Todaro noticed the officer seemed off and invited the officer to talk. Todaro took over the unit to give the officer a break then set up a meeting with a captain and lieutenant to connect the officer with resources necessary for addressing the mental health crisis — an action the officer describes as life-saving.
Todaro’s insight, compassion and quick action not only made a life-changing impact on one member of the team but also helped pave the way for staff to seek the support they need.
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New Leaders in Adult Institutions
The Division of Adult Institutions (DAI) has established two new deputy division director positions to help boost efficiency in management of critical areas affecting the state's prisons and the department's largest division. The positions will oversee human resources and security for the division.
Myles Strid has been named DAI Deputy Division Director for Security, effective Sept. 1, 2023.
Strid began his career with the department in 2009 as a Corrections Officer I at Jefferson City Correctional Center (JCCC). He was promoted to Corrections Officer II at Fulton Reception Diagnostic Center (FRDC) in December 2012 and to Corrections Officer III in December 2014.
He became Corrections Supervisor I at JCCC in October 2016 and Corrections Supervisor II in February 2018. In May 2019, he joined the Central Office team as assistant security administrator in the Security Intelligence Unit. He then became deputy warden at JCCC in March 2020 and warden at Moberly Correctional Center (MCC) in May 2022.
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Lori Lewis has been named DAI Deputy Division Director for Human Resources, effective Sept. 3, 2023.
Lewis began her career with the department in 1997 as a Corrections Officer I at Northeast Correctional Center (NECC). She became a Corrections Classification Assistant in March 2001, a Probation and Parole Officer in April 2005 and a Functional Unit Manager in July 2013.
In August 2016, she was promoted to Education Supervisor at Women’s Eastern Reception, Diagnostic & Correctional Center. In March 2018 she became a Reentry Coordinator in Central Office, and in December 2018, she took a position as Deputy Warden at NECC. She has served as Division of Human Services Deputy Director for Staff Training and Development since April 2020.
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New Wardens Appointed
Rusty Ratliff has been named warden of Moberly Correctional Center (MCC), effective September 1, 2023.
Ratliff began his career with the department in September 1996 as a Corrections Officer I at Moberly Correctional Center (MCC). He was promoted to Corrections Classification Assistant in August 2004 and then to Corrections Services Trainee in January 2009. He became a Corrections Case Worker I in January 2010 and Corrections Case Manager II in November 2011.
Ratliff was promoted to Functional Unit Manager in July 2019 and then to the position of Assistant Warden in October 2020. He has served as MCC deputy warden since July 2021.
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Clay Stanton has been named warden of Northeast Correctional Center (NECC), effective July 13, 2023.
Stanton began his career with the Department of Corrections in September 1998 as a Corrections Officer I at Western Reception Diagnostic & Correctional Center (WRDCC). He was promoted to Corrections Officer II at Maryville Treatment Center (MTC) in July 2000 and to Corrections Officer III in November 2004.
He was promoted to Corrections Supervisor I in August 2008 and to Corrections Supervisor II in May 2016. In July 2020, he began serving as Deputy Warden at NECC.
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Missouri Sets the Bar for Public Safety Through Data and Technology
 The Missouri Department of Corrections has gained national attention for our work in using data and research to make informed decisions that improve outcomes for people involved in the criminal justice system.
The data science company Recidiviz recently interviewed Research, Planning & Process Improvement Director David Edwards about how data can catalyze innovation and empathy in corrections and help probation and parole staff to better understand patterns in absconding and revocations. Read the article "Exploring Research & Data's Impact on Corrections: In Conversation with David Edwards of the Missouri Department of Corrections."
Recidiviz also has produced the video "Missouri DOC Embraces Technology to Strengthen Public Safety and Rehabilitation," in which Director Anne Precythe spotlights how data and technology help correction staff to better support people on community supervision.
Watch the video.
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Department Recognized as Military-Friendly Employer
 Last month, Missouri Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) presented the Missouri Department of Corrections with the Seven Seals award in recognition of our support and advocacy for members of our team who are in the National Guard or Reserves. Our department is dedicated to looking out for staff who serve our country while also serving our state.
Staff Cafes Opening in Corrections Facilities
Aramark, the vendor providing food service to offenders in Missouri Department of Corrections facilities, has begun installing cafés for employees, replacing current dining rooms.
When installation has been completed, staff at each facility will be able to buy low-cost food items from the grab-and-go micro market or order a freshly prepared hot dish à la carte from the grill.
Renovations underway include new floors and paint in each staff café as well as installation of product machines, self-pay kiosks and security cameras.
Cafés already have opened in Southeast Correctional Center (SECC) and Eastern Reception, Diagnostic & Correctional Center (ERDCC).
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State Begins Testing New Microsoft Applications
This month the State of Missouri embarks on the first phase of adopting Microsoft 365 (M365), a cloud-based family of productivity software products, as part of the Digital Government Transformation (DGT) initiative.
DGT aims to modernize our technology systems while creating a world-class experience for State of Missouri employees and citizens through collaboration and integration. DGT encompasses several projects designed to transform how state employees serve the citizens of Missouri and will provide an enhanced experience for individual citizens and businesses by improving access and the transactional experience associated with state services.
M365 is one project that will modernize the Microsoft suite of applications to enable collaboration across agencies.
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What applications come with M365?
The State of Missouri will deploy two licenses: G3 and F3. G3 enables users to access applications through the browser and download desktop versions. F3 limits users to the browser. Both G3 and F3 offer familiar applications, including Word, Excel, Power Point and many others. The department continues to assess the licensing needs of our staff and is working to identify testers to help evaluate the two versions applicability to our operations. Testing beings this month and may continue in October.
When will M365 be available?
M365 will be phased in. OA will introduce the Office Suite starting in fall 2023. The Department of Corrections is tentatively scheduled to implement the change in late January 2024. We will keep you posted. Email migration to the cloud will follow each agency’s applications deployment. Microsoft Teams (team sites, chat, voice/video conferencing, and document sharing) will begin in the New Year.
Watch this space for more information about M365!!
 Registration is open for the fifth annual Show Me Excellence Summit, an all-day virtual operational excellence event hosted by the State of Missouri. In keeping with this year’s theme, "Road to Excellence," participants will share how their agencies navigate through change while continuously improving. The event will feature two keynote speakers and eight break-out sessions covering topics such as onboarding, setting the stage for change, and using data to drive decisions.There are topics for everyone!
To attend the "Road to Excellence" event, register online.
Golf Tournament Benefits Benevolent Fund
 Thanks to everyone who participated in the 2023 Director's Cup Golf Tournament at Tanglewood Golf Course in Fulton. The four-person scramble and lunch event raised more than $30,000 for the Missouri 10-33 Benevolent Fund, a statewide fund for the survivors of public safety officers who have given their lives in the line of duty. Since the Missouri 10-33 Benevolent Fund's inception in 2000, 125 public safety professionals have lost their lives in service to citizens.
The Winners
Overall Champion, 58: Jim Wiseman, Lenny Lenger, Royce Hudson, Joe Eddy
Director’s Cup Champion, 59: Ben Leftridge, Steve Stegal, Rodney Young, Sam Mc Ferron
1st A Flight, 64: Sarah Jensen, Taylor Hagenhoff, Brent Pogue, Matt Burton
2nd A Flight, 65: Ed Yahnig, Shawn Thompson, Mark Stoehr, Dale Hale
1st B Flight, 68: Josh Lambert, Broc McGuire, Tom DiFranco
2nd B Flight, 68: Timothy Gardner, Eric Gardner, William Cassidy
1st Women, 68: Mandy Brandletter, Melissa Baskett, Terri Eastwood, Toni Wright
2nd Women, 70: Michelle Muenke, Jennifer Battson-Warren, Jackie Barron, Lauren Limon
Men — Longest Drive: Norm Graham; Closest to Pin: Adam Glassi; Longest Putt: Boston Smith
Women — Longest Drive: Michelle Muenks; Longest Putt: Jackie Barron
Six Facilities Take Part in Global Leadership Summit
 Last month, staff and offenders at six Missouri Department of Corrections facilities took part in the 2023 Global Leadership Summit (GLS), a worldwide leadership seminar during which dynamic speakers inspire attendees to become catalysts for change in their communities. In the latest incarnation of this 30-year-old program, people in 220 prisons around the world tuned in to the online summit for inspiration and motivation. Among them were Missouri's Southeast Correctional Center (SECC), Algoa Correctional Center (ACC), Eastern Reception, Diagnostic & Correctional Center (ERDCC), Jefferson City Correctional Center (JCCC), Potosi Correctional Center (PCC) and Farmington Correctional Center (FCC).
Speakers included former Duke University men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, former sports agent Molly Fletcher, Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson, McManus Masterminds founder Erwin McManus, Life Church founder Craig Groeschel and actor/comedian/author Michael Jr.
 Back in 2014, Prison Fellowship was a host site for GLS, which was produced by Willow-Creek Methodist Church and Campus in Illinois. Representatives from Global Leadership Network (GLN) and Prison Fellowship teamed up to bring the event to prisons, starting with Angola State Prison in Louisiana and Folsom State Prison in California. SECC joined the movement in 2015, and ACC began participating in 2017. The 2023 event was the biggest yet, with the largest participation from Missouri DOC facilities.
The summit aims to reshape the lives of those in prison and change how incarcerated people think about themselves — not as powerless absentee figures but as spouses and parents with a future who can get out, find work, be successful, and lead others.
In 2019, GLN created the initiative “GLS on the Outside,” which gives everyone who attends the summit while incarcerated the opportunity to get two free tickets to attend in person after release. Participants can call 1-800-570-9812 for instructions.
See the prison program in action at globalleadership.org/prisons.
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New Reentry Center Highlighted
Farmington Correctional Center (FCC) recently took the Daily Journal on a tour of the facility's reentry center, the tenth established inside a Missouri state prison. FCC's center opened earlier this year in a freshly remodeled building housing classrooms, computer labs, restorative justice programs, staff offices, a media room and more. Reentry Services Supervisor Billie Since, Institutional Reentry Coordinator Shelia Pigmon, Corrections Case Manager Matthew Petty and other staff highlighted the work FCC is doing to prepare people leaving prison for success after incarceration, as featured in the story "Reentry center hopes to break the reincarceration cycle."
"While prisons, by their very nature, aren’t intended to offer an inviting and friendly environment," editor Kevin Jenkins writes, "there is definitely a different feel to the reentry center — call it a feeling of hope."
Puppies for Parole Trainees Show off Their Skills
Members of the Puppies for Parole team at all levels, from administrators to offender-dog handlers, wowed spectators last month at the fourth annual Dawg Days showcase at Jefferson City Correctional Center. P4P dogs competed in trials including a puppy push-up contest, an agility course, a doggy drag race and a freestyle segment in which dogs demonstrated the special tricks they'd learned.
The event marked the last Dawg Days for offender Joe Denti, who, after 34 in prison and 13 with P4P, will be released in November and go to work for K9s for Camo. His trainee, Hank, will join K9s for Camo in preparation to become a service animal for a veteran. "These dogs have saved me," Denti told the Jefferson City News-Tribune. "These dogs give us purpose."
Puppies for Parole Coordinator Jennifer Liebi said a special bond forms between offenders and the dogs they train. "Some of these guys have never been responsible for anything in their life," Liebi told KOMU, "and now we're giving them a dog and saying, 'Hey, they're broken just like you. They are scared, just like you were at one point.'"
Since its 2010 inception, P4P trainers have trained and socialized more than 7,000 rescue dogs for adoption.
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Dawg Days in the News
Changes to the Purchase and Receipt of Reading Material
Effective Sept. 25, 2023, offenders no longer will be permitted to receive publications purchased by family and friends. However, offenders may purchase their own reading materials (books, magazines, newspapers, religious materials and correspondence courses) from bona fide vendors. This change is designed to limit the avenues used for introduction of drugs and contraband into facilities.
A publication includes any printed material that is published and made available for commercial purposes (books, magazines, and newspapers). Reading materials must meet censorship guidelines and must not exceed $100 in value, threaten safety and security of the institution, or exceed property limits.
Dream Job Challenge
A career in corrections can be rewarding. It can also expose staff to negativity and stress.
The MODOC Wellness team wants to help you to find new ways to maintain a positive mindset to both counter the impact of stress and set you up to thrive. The DREAM JOB wellness challenge is a voluntary and free platform all Missouri Department of Corrections employees can use. It helps you practice positivity by thinking, writing and sharing about the best parts of your work.
To participate in this challenge, simply share what you love about what you do in an email to wellness@doc.mo.gov through September 16. Responses from participants will be shared weekly throughout the challenge period, sparking positive conversations about what we like about the work we do.
Three winners will be randomly selected to receive an occupational wellness bundle, which includes a MODOC Wellness T-shirt and a set of Desert Waters pocket books on occupational wellness within Corrections.
Need a little inspiration? Take a look at the latest collection of Dream Job Challenge submissions.
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Corrections Way ambassadors serve a vital role in supporting The Corrections Way (TCW), a foundation of conduct and communication built around a core of common values guiding our work. Ambassadors steer fellow staff to resources and answer questions about Corrections Way training, practice and initiatives. They keep TCW at the forefront at sites across the state. They facilitate TCW workshops, conduct leadership walks, create TCW bulletin boards, assist with planning for quality conversations, de-escalate staff tensions, send motivational emails, create TCW newsletters, and assist with planning fun activities that build morale. They are a dedicated group of people who want to create a working environment where everyone belongs — an environment built on trust, respect and rapport!
Becoming an Ambassador
As of July 1, 2023, the department has adopted a new process for adding new Corrections Way ambassadors and influencers to the Corrections Way team.
Ambassador facilitate workshops and conduct one-on-one conversations with staff who need help preparing and practicing TCW skills. Influencers are responsible for other TCW activities at their worksites, including newsletters, bulletin boards and inspirational emails. Both roles are vital in sustaining the department's cultural shift through TCW. The question becomes which role you feel most comfortable in and excited about.
What's New
Application Process
Anyone interested in becoming an ambassador or an influencer can simply complete and submit the TCW Team Member Application according to the instructions within the application. The application can be found on the K drive in the Ambassadors file or can be downloaded here. Applications are reviewed for completeness and accuracy. Approved applicants are notified within two weeks and then scheduled for the next TCW Boot Camp.
Boot Camp Format
The Corrections Way Boot Camps are designed to include both ambassadors and influencers. During boot camp, Senior Staff Development Training Specialists (SSDTS) Ashley Golden, Jamie Jepsen and Carissa Mitchell evaluate and determine which path the participants will take, based on each participant’s interests, skill set and attitude. At the end of the boot camp, each potential new ambassador receives a scheduled date and time to meet with an SSDTS one-on-one to discuss next steps and enroll in the Ambassador Learning Path.
Ambassador Learning Path
The Ambassador Learning Path includes dedicated learning opportunities and coaching sessions with an SSDTS. The learning path consists of online learning as well as individual and group coaching sessions. Ambassadors who complete boot camp are notified of the dates and times for the upcoming learning path coaching sessions, and the SSDTS tracks the progress in DOC.GPS. The learning path must be completed within three months.
If you have questions, please contact one of the Senior Staff Development Training Specialists: Ashley Golden (central region), Jamie Jepsen (eastern region), or Carissa Mitchell (western region).
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Director's Coin of Excellence
 Meet the newest recipients of the Director of Staff Training & Development Coin of Excellence, who rose to the top of Class 1 at each of the department's three training centers. The new team members were nominated by peers and selected by training center staff for demonstrating a high standard of excellence in areas including attendance, appearance, class conduct, class participation and test scores during basic training.
Congratulations to Rachel Kirby from Boonville Correctional Center (BCC), Jordan Tibbs from Farmington Correctional Center (FCC) and Malachi Williams from Western Reception, Diagnostic & Correctional Center (WRDCC). Welcome to the family!
Training Academy Newsletter
Check out Training Academy Corner, a monthly newsletter of the Missouri Department of Corrections Training Academy, to meet new trainers and stay up to date on training requirements and course offerings.
 The state’s business cycle runs on a fiscal year timeframe, this year from July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024 (FY2024). Each year we articulate our priorities to support better government in Missouri through our strategic plan. In fiscal year 2024, our mission and our goals remain constant, but our strategic initiatives continue to evolve. We are building on past years' success and adding new priorities.
Take a look at our current strategic initiatives »
Mission
Improving Lives for Safer Communities
Vision
Excellence in Corrections for a Safer Missouri
Values
We value safe work environments, a capable workforce and reduced risk and recidivism.
We value integrity and respect.
We value supportive leadership.
We value employee participation and teamwork.
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