MODOC Staff Recognized at Correctional Peace Officers Foundation Event
 Members of the Missouri Department of Corrections team were recognized during the Correctional Peace Officers Foundation (CPOF) PROJECT 2000 XXXIV event in Bellevue, Washington, last month. Six staff members were honored as assault survivors, while Chillicothe Correctional Center (CCC), Fulton Reception & Diagnostic Center (FRDC) and Western Reception, Diagnostic & Correctional Center (WRDCC) were presented with lifetime sponsorship plaques. Honorees were escorted by Missouri Department of Corrections Honor Guard members Sammie Gray and Luis Pacheco, who also took part in ceremonies and events throughout the four-day gathering.
Among those honored were Jacob Smith, David Wallace and Scott Robnett from Eastern Reception Diagnostic & Correctional Center (ERDCC); Justin Arbogast from South Central Correctional Center (SCCC); Kenneth Paine from Potosi Correctional Center (PCC); and John Reeves from Southeast Correctional Center (SECC). Wardens and family members attended in support of their people.
CPOF is a national non-profit charitable organization whose primary function is to preserve and support the surviving families of correctional officers who lose their lives in pursuit of their profession. A correctional institution becomes a lifetime facility sponsor of CPOF by donating $5,000 or more.
Corrections Mourns the Passing of Our Own
The Missouri Department of Corrections recently lost two beloved members of our team. Both were dedicated corrections professionals who courageously served incarcerated Missourians in their care while supporting and protecting their colleagues. Both are survived by family members who also are part of the corrections team.
Nikki Ellzey, Jefferson City Correctional Center
Jefferson City Correctional Center's Sergeant Nicole Ellzey lost her life June 9, 2024. She was 46.
Ellzey served in the Missouri Department of Corrections from May 2000 to February 2001 and rejoined the department as a correctional officer in April 2021. She was promoted to sergeant in August 2022.
In 2022, Ellzey was presented with the Director's Award of Valor in recognition of her heroism. She and fellow officers Morris Holt and Brittany Odum put themselves in harm’s way to protect a fellow officer who had been attacked and rendered unconscious while escorting an offender. Ellzey recently earned a second award of valor, which will be presented posthumously in fall 2024.
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Donnie Eads, Crossroads Correctional Center
Crossroads Correctional Center's Sergeant Donald Eads lost his life May 26, 2024. He was 45.
A 24-year employee of the Missouri Department of Corrections, Eads was working as a transportation sergeant at CRCC at the time of his death.
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Greg Wykes, energy management coordinator in the Division of Human Services, is the June 2024 employee of the month.
Wykes knows how to tackle an emergency. On a holiday-weekend Sunday afternoon in the height of winter, amid subzero temperatures, Northeast Correctional Center (NECC) experienced a failure in its heating loop piping that cut off heat for half of the facility.
As temperatures dropped and site staff worked frantically to both find a leak and retain heat in the buildings, Wykes drove to Bowling Green to seek a quick solution. Coordinating with site staff and area contractors — while employing some MacGyver-level ingenuity — Wykes worked for 10 hours on a temporary solution to get the heat running and avoid a catastrophic situation for staff and residents. He then returned to the facility and again endured extreme cold to personally oversee the completion of a permanent repair.
Wykes's commitment to a job well done warms not only our buildings but also our hearts.
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Crossroads Correctional Center Teacher Earns Adult Education Honors
 Adult education literacy coordinator David Pershing, Crossroads Correctional Center teacher Stephony Hoppe, Tipton Correctional Center teacher Leslianne Bagwill and Ozark Correctional Center teacher Penny Carmon.
Crossroads Correctional Center (CRCC) teacher Stephony Hoppe has been named Outstanding Member of the Year by the Missouri Association for Adult Continuing and Community Education (MAACCE). A Missouri Department of Corrections employee for more than 25 years, Hoppe has helped countless incarcerated students gain academic skills and pass high school equivalency exams. She has mentored fellow adult education and literacy teachers, coaching them through finding the best methods to reach their students. She also has given multiple conference presentations, led workshops and buoyed her community of educators.
MAACE promotes community development and lifelong learning by supporting Missouri adult-education professionals working in diverse learning situations, such as community-based organizations, university extension programs, career centers, human resources training and adult counseling — as well as corrections. The MAACCE Member of the Year Award is presented to a MAACCE member who understands the characteristics of their program and students and is committed to the education profession.
Staff Honored for Aiding Colleagues and Residents on the Road
 Chillicothe Correctional Center (CCC) Officers Nicholas Fostek and Zachary Bendure have earned the Missouri Department of Corrections Lifesaver Award. Fostek, Bendure and fellow officer Jeremy Fulk were assisting Crossroads Correctional Center (CRCC) with transfers, driving residents between CRCC and Jefferson City Correctional Center (JCCC), when a tractor trailer pulled out in front of the transfer van Fullk was driving, causing a collision and wrecking the vehicle. Bendure and Fostek, who were following Fulk, immediately pulled over to assist. They notified emergency personnel and provided medical aid to the five offenders in the van. They also cleared debris off the highway to help prevent other drivers from running over the wreckage and causing additional accidents. They stayed with the van until it was secure and then went with the offenders to the hospital, where they offered support until they were relieved by colleagues.
Staff Pay Increase Begins
A 3.2% pay raise for all Missouri state government employees, proposed by Governor Mike Parson in January and approved by the Missouri General Assembly in May, is now in place. July 31 paychecks will reflect the new pay rates, which went into effect July 1, 2024.
This raise brings the state’s total investment in pay increases for corrections staff since 2017 to $199.3 million. The latest increase brings starting annual salaries to $42,628 ($46,788 with shift differential) for corrections officers, $46,834 for probation and parole officers and $34,999 for office support assistants.
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New Staff Join the Corrections Family
  Congratulations to newest members of the Missouri Department of Corrections family! The new staff completed basic training at the Eastern Region Training Center, the Central Region Training Center and the new Center for Excellence in Corrections.
FY25 Requirements, Learning Management System, Civil Rights Training
Staff training and development changes are underway for fiscal year 2025.
The department is transitioning to a new learning management system called MOVERS Learn, part of a larger project that consolidates management of many processes (personnel, procurement, financials, etc.) for all state agencies in one system. The date for the transition has not yet been set. In the interim, staff are asked not to begin new trainings in DOC-GPS.
The Civil Rights Training team will offer the latest version of Dignity, Courtesy, and Respect statewide in FY25. Supervisors and administrators will take the class in person. Frontline staff who took the training online last year must take it in person this year; those who took it in person last year can take it online this year. New hires who took the course during basic training in FY24 will take it in person if they're in the Division of Adult Institutions, the the Division of Probation & Parole or the Office of the Director; other staff may take it online. The online version will be available with the launch of the new MOVERS Learn system.
The staff training and development team has created a new annual mandatory training form to help staff determine mandatory training requirements for FY25. Select the appropriate categories for your job type — custody or non-custody, institutional or non-institutional, frontline or supervisor — to view a list of required courses for the new fiscal year. Download the form »
Random Screening for Staff, Visitors, Volunteers Starts Aug. 1
Supporting the effort to safeguard our facilities and protect staff and residents from dangerous contraband, on Aug. 1, the Missouri Department of Corrections will begin using body scanners for staff, visitors, vendors, contractors and volunteers entering adult institutions.
The Intercept full-body scanner will be used in conjunction with walk-through metal detectors, hand-held metal detectors and X-ray baggage scanners to keep out weapons, drugs and other prohibited items that may compromise safety and security.
Every staff member's name and employee ID number will be entered into the body scanner system and stored before body scanner use begins.
Body scanning starts:
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August 1, 2024: ERDCC, PCC, SCCC, MECC
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September 1, 2024: WRDCC, FCC, JCCC, CRCC
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October 1, 2024: ACC, NECC, MCC, SECC
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November 1, 2024: TCC, BCC, FRDC, WERDCC
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December 1, 2024: CCC, MTC, OCC, TCKC, TCSTL
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How It Works
Each person entering a front entry search point will push a random search selector, which determines who is subject to a full body scan. The person being scanned stands inside the Intercept and remains motionless as the operator initiates a four-second scan. The image displays on the workstation monitor, and the operator inspects the image for concealed objects.
Who May Be Scanned
Anyone 18 or older entering a facility may be scanned unless they have an approved accommodation, such as a verified medical condition or pregnancy. If you have a medical condition, you may submit a request for accommodation to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) site coordinator. If you are pregnant, you may submit a request to the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) site coordinator.
Safety
The Intercept is safe. It operates as a general-use system under guidelines defined by ANSI/HPS N43.17 (American National Standards Institute / Health Physics Society). Intercept acquires images by using an extremely low level of transmission X-ray. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates the Intercept, the dose from one screening with a general-use X-ray security screening system is so low that a person would have to be screened more than a thousand times in one year in order to exceed the annual radiation dose limit for screening that has been set by expert radiation safety organizations.
First Responder Provider Network Supports Emergency-Services Professionals
The First Responder Provider Network (FRPN) has launched a new website to help first responders access the services they need. FRPN aims to increase access to — and improve the quality of — culturally competent behavioral health care for first responders. Missouri's Crisis Intervention Team State Counsel (MO CIT) has identified a list of trained behavioral health professionals who specialize in helping law enforcement, emergency medical service (EMS) staff, firefighters, correctional staff and other first responders struggling with depression, anxiety, relationship problems, post-traumatic stress symptoms and suicidal ideation. The vetted providers are trained in trauma and have clinical and/or personal experience with a culture of professionals often stigmatized for seeking or receiving mental health treatment.
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The site provides easy access to providers and peer support as well as external resources such as the Cordico wellness app, a confidential app available to first responders and their loved ones. When arranging care, users should keep in mind:
- The FRPN is considered a self-referral source
- Most FRPN clinicians have a private practice.
Follow these steps when contacting a clinician from the FRPN list to ensure you are a priority:
- Let them know you are a first responder. Say something like “I’m a first responder and would like to make an appointment.”
- Tell them how quickly you need to be seen.
Department Expands Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opiate Use Disorder
The Missouri Department of Corrections is working with Centurion and Gateway to further reduce harm for incarcerated Missourians who have opioid use disorder (OUD) by expanding medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder within all Missouri Department of Corrections facilities. Currently, residents are eligible to receive MAT services within six months of release. Starting August 1, residents who have an OUD can receive medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) services at any time during incarceration.
Things to know:
- Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is considered the “gold standard” of care for opioid use disorder (OUD). We refer to MAT for OUD as MOUD.
- The FDA has approved three medications for treating OUD (MOUD): methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone.
- Treatment with MOUD is combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy, psychiatric care or other forms of psychosocial support both during and after incarceration.
Department Adopts New Employee Wellness Management System
 MyCority is ready to roll!
The MyCority secure online platform, accessible 24/7, gives Department of Correction staff the ability to view key aspects of their employee health files, submit requests for FMLA, schedule appointments with select Employee Health, Wellness and Safety (EHWS) team members, or complete annual forms and self-help questionnaires.
To get started, go to https://doc.my.coritygov.com/#/login.
Select "forgot password," and enter your active directory user name (e.g., ads/abc000ad).
You'll receive an email with a link and instructions to set your password. From the home page, you can easily access all of the features.
Download the full MyCority guide »
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Three-Part Campaign Emphasizes Community, Health and Wealth
MODOC Employee Wellness has launched a new Community, Health & Wealth campaign, the goal of which is to continue raising awareness about resources that support personal and professional wellbeing. Each section includes educational elements and activities relevant to the featured dimension of wellness. Components include an individual challenge, a wellness competition, webinars and a toolkit. Short surveys help the wellness team better meet the needs of staff.
The Community Wellness campaign, addressing social and environmental wellness, runs July through October, 2024. It includes a grow-your-connection challenge; a site-versus-site community fundraiser competition; webinars on the Guild, the Arthritis Foundation, the Battle Within and Warrior's Ascent; and a toolkit with resources such as SELF, Learn to Live, LiveHealth, worksite clubs and local volunteering options.
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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!
Sergeant Jeffrey Wiggs, Moberly Correctional Center (MCC)
I first became involved with The Corrections Way at Moberly Correctional Center (MCC) because the people who asked me to join were people I had a lot of respect for. When I started this journey, I was kind of a skeptic, but since then, I have gone through The Corrections Way Boot Camp, where I learned a lot and found tools that I find myself using daily as a supervisor.
I look at being a TCW ambassador as simply being someone who cares and is invested in staff. Using TCW practices, I have built better, more meaningful relationships with my peers, and I find it easier to connect with my staff. It has helped me identify the communication styles of those around me and see how different each person really is when it comes to how they absorb information, how they communicate and how I, as a supervisor, should adjust to them to ensure information is being relayed effectively. It has helped me in identifying and understanding not just what values I bring to our workforce, but what others bring as well. I have found joy in doing workshops and having more meaningful conversations with my peers. At the end of the day, we are all in this together, and it’s important for us to be a team. TCW helps make that happen.
MODOC has a lot of different avenues that we can take to find purpose in the work that we do. The Corrections Way is one of those avenues I have taken to find that purpose. I have found that the TCW team at Moberly Correctional Center is an absolute awesome group of people all working toward change for the better, and I am very fortunate to be a part of that team.
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 Please complete this brief survey about Missouri Vocational Enterprises (MVE) products and services. Your feedback helps inform and support continuous improvement.
 The state’s business cycle runs on a fiscal year timeframe, this year from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025 (FY 2025). Each year we articulate our priorities to support better government in Missouri through our strategic plan. In fiscal year 2025, 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.
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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