ARCHIVED: 2013 News Stories
KDOC Names Audrey Cress New Director of Victim Services
The Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) has chosen a new director of the Office of Victim Services (OVS), Secretary Ray Roberts announced on Wednesday, June 5, 2013.
KDOC raises money in Governor's Freedom Ride
Several members of KDOC joined a host of motorcycle enthusiasts for a 100-mile ride to raise funds for Kansas causes.
Croatian-born star performs holiday concert for LCF
The spirit of Christmas brought Croatia and Lansing Correctional Facility – two worlds that couldn’t be further apart – together for one special night Wednesday, December 4, 2013.
KCI staff member earns National Correctional Industries Award
Tom Vohs, deputy director of Kansas Correctional Industries (KCI) in Lansing, was named the winner of the National Correctional Industries Association (NCIA) staff award for the South Central Region and is a finalist for a national award which will be announced in April.
ECF inmates make a difference at Ottawa Middle School
Hoping to help students embark on a path to success, two Ellsworth Correctional Facility (ECF) residents gave both time and money recently to the Ottawa Middle School.
Celebrity Chef Pays It Forward at Hutchinson Correctional Facility
Celebrity chef and bestselling author Jeff Henderson dropped by the kitchen at Hutchinson Correctional Facility (HCF) Tuesday and spoke to inmates to deliver a message of inspiration and hope about their futures after prison. Henderson, who spent nearly a decade in federal prison for drug trafficking, was in town to give a lecture at Hutchinson Community College and requested the HCF visit.
Barton Community College holds Learning Celebration at ECF
On Nov. 29, 2013, Barton Community College (BCC) representatives hosted the ninth annual Learning Celebration at Ellsworth Correctional Facility (ECF), at which the college highlighted the success of the partnership and recognized the accomplishments of inmates of the facility.
Video celebrates ECF partnership with Barton Community College
Following a reception held Sept. 9, 2013 at Ellsworth Correctional Facility (ECF) to celebrate their partnership with the facility, Barton Community College produced a video calling the program at the prison its most successful community venture.
Lab at TCF receives $25,000 grant from Delta Dental
Delta Dental of Kansas Foundation recently awarded the dental lab at Topeka Correctional Facility, a grant for $25,000 for the purchase of equipment and supplies.
Washburn University’s coach, basketball players give clinic to KJCC residents
Washburn University basketball coach Bob Chipman and five members of the Ichabod team gave some pointers on the game of basketball, and a few on the game of life, to residents of the Kansas Juvenile Correctional Complex (KJCC) Monday, Oct. 14, 2013.
East Hill Singers documentary to air on TV following premiere at film fest
Conducting Hope, a documentary film portraying a singing group from Lansing Correctional Facility (LCF), will air on KTWU at 7 p.m. on Nov. 7, 2013, as well as on 60 PBS stations across the country beginning on Nov. 1, 2013.
Documentary featuring East Hill Singers to premiere in Kansas City
A documentary film portraying a singing group from Lansing Correctional Facility will premiere at the Kansas International Film Festival on Saturday, October 5, 2013 at 3 p.m.
KDOC names Marie McNeal new director of community corrections services
Longtime KDOC employee Marie McNeal will become the new director of community corrections services for the agency.
Oral Health Kansas Award Goes to Topeka Correctional Facility Lab
Oral Health Kansas, a group dedicated to improving oral health in Kansas through advocacy, public awareness and education, has presented its Outstanding Oral Health Volunteer Award for 2013 to the students and the administrative specialist, Kathy Heerwald, of the Kansas Correctional Industries Dental Lab at the Topeka Correctional Facility.
Topeka Correctional Facility group performs original drama
A group of maximum- and high-medium-custody inmates writing and performing original drama productions at Topeka Correctional Facility (TCF) is finding its voice.
Audit finds Norton Correctional Facility excelling in medical services
An audit performed Sept 24 and 25 of the medical and mental health services at Norton Correctional Facility (NCF) found the facility to be in total compliance with mandatory standards.
KDOC Tabs Leiker as Head of Larned Juvenile Facility
After serving as Acting Superintendent of the Larned Juvenile Correctional Facility (LJCF) for the past six months, Wendy Leiker has been selected to fill that role permanently, the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) announced on September 19.
Norton Inmate Models Creativity
A resident at Norton Correctional Facility’s Stockton site has found a creative outlet that makes him a “model” inmate.
Barton Community College recognizes Ellsworth Correctional Facility with Partners in Education Award
Time behind bars is not intrinsically effective at reforming inmates. If an inmate’s situation hasn’t changed upon release, the statistics say it’s likely he or she will end up behind bars once again.
FHSU basketball players hold clinic for Larned Juvenile Correctional Facility
Hollywood couldn’t write a better script than one about a juvenile offender, motivated to put himself on a better path, mentored by wise, caring adults, who graduated from a correctional facility to star on a college basketball team.
Water Technology program offers students valuable career training
For residents at a Kansas juvenile correctional facility, enrolling in a new training program at the facility may prove to be a “watershed moment” in their lives.
Governor salutes 29 graduates of KDOC Leadership Development Academy
Governor Sam Brownback joined in a celebration of the graduates of the KDOC 2012-2013 Leadership Development Academy, held August 13 at the state capitol building.
KSU Extension partners with HCF to produce Garden for Good
Inmate gardeners hope to donate 10,000 pounds of vegetables and $5,000 in profit to local charities.
Juvenile facility commemorates a decade in new building
It’s not the building, but the people who work there, who are responsible for the success of Larned Juvenile Correctional Facility (LJCF). That was the sentiment shared by current and former staff, who gathered to celebrate 10 years of the program’s current home Wednesday, July 10.
Merger of juvenile, adult correctional systems becomes official
A plan to merge the state’s juvenile and adult correctional systems goes into effect today, following the legislature’s approval and months of preparation.
Donation Made To Brothers in Blue Re-Entry
Governor Sam Brownback presented a check in the amount of $4,954.85 to Kansas Department of Corrections Secretary Ray Roberts and Stewart Frederick, Re-Entry Manager for the Brothers in Blue Re-Entry program located at the Lansing Correctional Facility. The presentation occurred Saturday, September 14 in the Kansas Department of Corrections exhibit building at the Kansas State Fair.
Ellsworth Correctional Facility to Celebrate 25th Anniversary
Ellsworth Correctional Facility (ECF) celebrates 25 years of service to Kansas this summer, highlighted by a ceremony to be held June 21, when the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) will recognize the contributions of all who have ever served at the facility.
JJA to launch new offender management information system
The Juvenile Justice Authority (JJA) will begin making the long-awaited transition to a new offender management information system this fall.
Bill Snyder donates autographed footballs to Mentoring4Success
Kansas State University football coach Bill Snyder has dedicated his career to mentoring college football players. Now his interest in Kansas prisons will result in funds to help match inmates with mentors of their own.
TCF's Wolf Pack wins Governor's Weight Loss Challenge
A group of corrections officers from Topeka Correctional Facility claimed first place in the Governor’s Weight Loss Challenge, receiving a $5,000 prize for dropping more than 19 percent of their collective weight.
Former Offenders Praised by Governor as they Graduate From BCCC
Graduation days are celebrations of hard work expended and the future opportunities that have been earned. They are a chance to look back on what it took to get there, as well as to look forward to what lies ahead. And many thanks are offered to those who helped along the way.
KDOC selects Peggy Lero to fill vacancy on Prisoner Review Board
Corrections Secretary Ray Roberts today announced the appointment of Peggy Lero as the newest member of the three-person Prisoner Review Board tasked with ruling on requests for parole by Kansas offenders.
All Three Escapees from Lansing Correctional Facility are Apprehended
At 10:22 pm this evening, inmate Randy Ridens, Sr, was apprehended as he was entering Topeka, Kansas. He was immediately transported back to Lansing Correctional Facility. Earlier in the evening, Allen Hurst and Scott Gilbert, the other two minimum custody escapees from Lansing Correctional Facility, had been apprehended and taken into custody by law enforcement officers in Clinton County, Missouri.
KDOC names organization's award winners for 2013
Following a ceremony to honor the winners of several awards from each of the state's correctional facilities, Governor Sam Brownback named the agency's statewide winners.
Ellsworth Correctional Facility inmates show talent for theater
More than 130 people, mostly residents of the Ellsworth area, packed an auditorium recently for a dinner-theater performance of the comedy The Ransom of Red Chief. But they weren’t there to see some performance of a traveling drama troupe. Nor were they on hand to support members of the town in a community theater.
Topeka Correctional Facility, Washburn team up for women’s health fair
In a collaborative effort, Topeka Correctional Facility (TCF), Correct Care Solutions (CCS), and Washburn University students and faculty from the nursing and criminal justice departments presented an educational health fair to women at the prison facility on April 11.
Topeka Correctional Facility receives high marks from audit
Reviewers finds progress at women's facility.
Lansing mental health therapist uses positive psychology
Positive Psychology Group Therapy for Maximum Security Male Inmates: identifying, nurturing, and enhancing strengths and virtues
JJA Lawrence Gardner High School Library receives 2013 Kansas Book Festival Grant
Kansas First Lady Mary Brownback announced Wednesday that Lawrence Gardner High School Library, located within the Kansas Juvenile Correctional Complex, won one of 11 Book Grants from the 2013 Kansas Book Festival Grants.
Corrections dental staff volunteer services in Wichita
Several dental staff of the Kansas Department of Corrections volunteered their expertise in a recent free clinic to provide dental care to needy Kansans.
Norton officer killed in automobile accident
Norton Corrections Officer Austin Shaw, 20, was killed in an accident in western Kansas March 6.
KJCC launches Environmental Water Technology training program
Youth in a Topeka juvenile correctional facility will soon begin training in a field that could net them attractive career options in the future.
Oswego unit provides options for housing elderly inmates
Governor Sam Brownback, along with about 180 guests, celebrated on Feb. 1 the opening of a specialized prison facility in Oswego, which will bring relief to system overcrowding, provide needed services to aging inmates, and give an economic boost to the southeast Kansas corridor.
Report outlines recommendations to increase public safety and save taxpayer dollars
Gov. Sam Brownback and Corrections Secretary Ray Roberts, along with experts from the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center, announced the release of a final report on the Kansas Justice Reinvestment Initiative today at a policy forum on public safety and corrections.
Governor Signs Order to Move Juvenile Justice Agency to Department of Corrections
Kansas Governor Sam Brownback took the first step Friday to reorganize the state’s juvenile justice system, putting into motion his plan to move the management of more than 1,500 juvenile offenders under the auspices of the state department of corrections.
State sponsors study of disproportionate contact, incarceration of minorities in juvenile system
Data accumulated over a two year period revealed interesting trends in minority youth contact with law enforcement and in the detention of juveniles in Kansas – data that researchers are sharing with the general population across Kansas with the goal to “change the mentality of the system.”
National Mentoring Month celebrates the impact of mentors on former offenders
The Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) is recognizing National Mentoring Month by continuing the call for Kansans to provide crucial mentoring to inmates as they transition from incarceration.
