The N.C. Department of Adult Correction honored its top Community Supervision employees during an event at NC State’s McKimmon Center on Aug. 22.
The annual Employee Recognition Ceremony honored staff across four divisions whose work established a standard of excellence throughout the Department of Adult Correction.
“Our Community Supervision officers and staff have some of the most challenging careers in law enforcement," said Secretary Todd Ishee. "They are so critical to our success in public safety and rehabilitation.”
Tracy K. Lee, deputy secretary for Community Supervision, said, “While the Community Supervision staff deserves our thanks and gratitude every day, I am very happy we can pause today to honor some of the truly outstanding work of our colleagues. With little public recognition or fanfare, they step up every day to improve the lives of those they supervise while helping to maintain public safety in the communities they serve. We owe them a great debt of gratitude.”
Photos of the award winners, as well as from the event, can be found on the DAC Flickr page. Narratives about top award winners are included below.
Map of Community Supervision divisions and districts
North Carolina Probation/Parole Officer of the Year
District 7 PPO Kevin Streeter
Kevin Streeter was previously assigned to supervise a Security Risk Group caseload in Edgecombe County. When he began his career his supervisor noticed he demonstrated organizational skills and the ability to effectively communicate with offenders. His supervisor also recognized that he consistently exceeded policy requirements for offender contacts. In 2022, Streeter continually provided exceptional supervision of the Tarboro gang population and collaborated with stakeholders to ensure offender compliance, while also working with these offenders to address criminogenic needs in hopes of them leaving the gang life behind and becoming productive members of society. Due to staff shortages, he willingly took on more cases to provide relief to his co-workers, many of whom had recently graduated from Basic Training. Probation/Parole Officer Streeter has served as a mentor for new employees. His positive attitude is infectious and has helped improve the atmosphere and overall morale throughout the office.
North Carolina Chief Probation/Parole Officer of the Year
District 27 CPPO Melissa Seals
In 2015, Melissa Seals was diagnosed with a serious medical condition that would require extensive surgery. After the surgery, she attended treatments every week for six months in Durham, which was over 3 hours away. She continued to work through these treatments even though they made her extremely fatigued and nauseous. This was such a demonstration of her reliability as an employee and supervisor. She worked in those conditions to make sure her unit was taken care of, and her workload didn't have to be redistributed for any longer than necessary.
In 2022, CPPO Seals received another serious medical diagnosis the same weekend her father was hospitalized. Multiple lengthy treatments were required, which made her extremely sick and compromised her immune system. However, she continued to work each day and provide direction for the officers and Judicial Services Coordinators on her unit. She did not divvy out her responsibilities to others but persevered with her normal job duties until she had major surgery in January 2023. During that time, she continued to assist staff with duties to include entering judgments when needed and assisting an officer in finding housing for a homeless sex offender with medical issues. This demonstrated her selflessness and willingness to help others. She has always shown empathy to the staff on her unit, as well as the offenders that are being supervised. She has shown unspeakable courage when having to literally fight for her life on two different occasions in less than 8 years. She has shown great persistence in getting through her personal battles while not allowing it to affect her work or duties.
Deputy Secretary Awards
Protection
District 3 PPO Jason Akes
On July 12, 2022, shots were fired at the Craven County Courthouse. PPO Akes and a deputy with the Craven County Sheriff’s office immediately began clearing the building. They proceeded outside where officers from various agencies advised the shooter was gone. PPO Akes observed two injured individuals laying on the sidewalk and noticed no one had begun administering aid, so he conducted a triage assessment. He determined an individual with a serious chest wound had the most significant injury and began rendering aid. After about 10 minutes, the paramedics arrived, and PPO Akes briefed them on the injuries and treatment provided and assisted getting both victims into the ambulance. PPO Akes took control of a chaotic situation and represented the department in an outstanding manner that day, as he does every day.
Community Engagement/Service
District 19A CPPO Ashley Chastain
For the last seven years, CPPO Ashely Chastain has worked as a member, and now co-chairs, the 10-42 Memorial Golf Tournament Committee. This golf tournament is hosted by Division 3 and Division 4 and all proceeds are donated to the Correctional Peace Officers Foundation. CPPO Chastain hosts meetings, completes minutes, recruits teams, maintains the finances and records, and is the general main point of contact for the event. She assists in obtaining sponsors, food donations, silent auction donations, and door prizes. She has created a website for the tournament and maintains the event's social media accounts. She spends countless hours each year working on this project. In the last 7 years, including some other joint efforts surrounding this event, over $102,000 has been raised and donated to CPOF. Every year she also plays a huge part in arranging different events for the Rowan County officers such as cookouts, holiday luncheons, gift giveaways, Easter egg hunts, and ice cream socials to help motivate the staff. She also creates a quarterly newsletter for District 19A staff.
Staff Wellness
District 3 CPPO Angela Jones
CPPO Angela Jones continuously strives to increase morale in the office and the proficiency of officers. When there is an issue that CPPO Jones needs to address with staff, she does it in a professional manner while still showing she cares. She actively ensures morale and unity among all officers is addressed. CPPO Jones has coordinated events in the office such as door decorating contests for holidays, lunches for staff, baby showers, and events that help celebrate staff’s personal or professional achievements, not just retirements. CPPO Jones takes time out of her schedule to work with staff on personal and work-related matters. CPPO Jones makes staff concerns a priority, while maintaining her professionalism. CPPO Jones has taken the initiative to ensure the department is operating to the best of our ability, to include reaching out to our local military base and getting the proper procedure confirmed with the right authorities on how to enter their jurisdiction without issue, keeping officers from getting into any legal issues on base.
Meritorious Service
District 25 PPO Paul Brittain
On 10/18/2022, PPO Paul Brittain was taking a dinner break when a restaurant employee collapsed on the kitchen floor. PPO Brittain did not hesitate to offer assistance. The employee was not breathing, so PPO Brittain began CPR the assisting officer arrived with Narcan. The Narcan was administered, and the individual became responsive. PPO Brittain remained with the individual until EMS arrived and took over.
As if saving one life wasn’t enough…
On 11/29/2022, PPO Brittain was conducting a home contact on a female offender who was pregnant. When he knocked on the door, her mother answered the door and called for her daughter to come to the door but got no response. The mother went upstairs to check on her daughter and screamed down to PPO Brittain for help. PPO Brittain ran upstairs to assess the situation and saw the offender laying on the bed, not breathing. She was not responding to physical tapping or shaking of her shoulder. PPO Brittain attempted to use his Narcan on the offender, but it had no effect. He asked her mother to contact 911 as he began CPR. He performed chest compressions for approximately three cycles before the offender began to breathe again. Caldwell County EMS arrived shortly after she began breathing and took over the scene. PPO Brittain stayed with the offender while she was checked out medically by EMS. The offender admitted to EMS that she had taken fentanyl earlier in the day, so EMS decided to transport her to the hospital for a more in depth exam. PPO Brittain followed EMS to the hospital to ensure the offender's well-being continued to improve and spoke to the emergency room medical staff who stated the offender was awake and alert. PPO Brittain contacted supervisory staff to make them aware of the incident and continued working his shift as scheduled.
PPO Brittain is a 25+ year employee that mentors and trains staff on a daily basis. He uses good judgment to assess situations quickly and responds as needed to help save lives and improve the lives of individuals on supervision. He does these things because he takes pride in his job and has a desire to change lives in a positive way.
Innovation
District 3 Administrative Specialist 1 Jennifer Garcia
Jennifer is an outstanding employee who ensures District 3 staff are always in the best shape as it relates to fiscal and personnel matters. In May of 2022, Jennifer assisted with the Division I training of all Administrative Specialists and management teams. For this training, she created the overall agenda and organized the materials to be presented. She created several spreadsheets which included annual forms, new hire processing, health benefits, inventory supplies, staff training, and reconciliation reports, just to name a few. Jennifer presented several topics during the training, ensuring that the information was clear and concise, and everyone had a good understanding of the material. She has trained two new administrative specialists and created an on-boarding checklist for administrative staff who are new to the position. This checklist has been an important tool in assisting new staff learn and become familiar with their job duties. Jennifer has created steps that assist in easily spotting overpayments and underpayments before an issue arises. This is a true asset in saving money and ensuring correct actions are made. Jennifer always takes the time to learn new things so she can excel at any task given to her. Everyone needs a “Jennifer” in their office because she encompasses innovation. She is such a well-blended individual that is committed to this agency and spreads positivity in all that she does.
Diversity
District 30 PPO Edwin Diaz
In December 2022, PPO Edwin Diaz volunteered to assist the Sheriff’s Office translate for a Spanish speaking suspect in an armed robbery of a bank, who would not cooperate. PPO Diaz is bilingual and speaks fluent Spanish. He loves to help Spanish speaking people by translating for the court and probation as the need arises. In this particular situation, PPO Diaz worked in direct collaboration with the State Bureau of Investigation, and detectives with the Jackson County Sheriff's Office and as a result, the suspect admitted to the crime and was charged accordingly. PPO Diaz was commended by the Sheriff’s Office for his assistance in helping them close this investigation.
Rehabilitation
District 7 PPO Brittiany Mateo
PPO Brittiany Mateo manages a caseload of mental health offenders and conducts mental health assessments on potential offenders for the program. PPO Mateo has worked with local providers to identify resources that assist offenders on her caseload including medication assisted treatment programs and reentry resources that could benefit this population. PPO Mateo strives to implement evidence-based practices with offenders supervised on her caseload. PPO Mateo continually demonstrates a strong working knowledge and utilization of evidence-based practices to positively affect the people she supervises. Her use of these strategies and sanctions to achieve balance and control epitomizes the goal of the department. PPO Mateo works hard to ensure offenders have the best chance for success. When dealing with homeless offenders, she utilizes local resources to attempt to secure housing including building an effective relationship with the local community outreach shelter, treatment providers, utilizing transitional housing, and exhausting available family resources. PPO Mateo utilizes skills learned in Crisis Intervention Training to help her better interact with offenders.
Staff Development
District 21 CPPO Shawn Smalls
CPPO Shawn Smalls is a Chief who thinks outside the box as it relates to staff and the district as a whole. She finds ways to motivate and reward staff daily. She uses creative methods to turn the tasks of supervision into fun endeavors. Recognizing competition can bring out the best in individuals, she regularly sends out the “Tools on Demand” top user report to encourage others to get on board. She creates ice breakers and games for staff to play in unit meetings and has assisted the district office in doing the same for CPPO meetings. She inspires others to explore creative ideas, most recently with a unit of the month bulletin board recognition. She motivates staff by making each staff a subject matter expert for the unit for different topics. CPPO Smalls is the district internship coordinator and takes this role seriously. She prioritizes the need to give each intern the best experience possible with our agency. She coordinates their duties with officers, JSCs, and field specialists. She conducts mock interviews with the interns and gives each of them a folder to symbolize carrying a weapon, that they must secure everywhere they go. She teaches them communication by allowing them to set up appointments with offenders and lets them complete a case review to learn the expectations of supervision. CPPO Smalls has worked with PPOs to create a progressive incentive program for security risk group population to enhance and incite good behavior.
District & Division Officers of the Year
Division 1
District 1 - Casey Maderazo
District 2 – Tonisha Nixon
District 3 - Jacky Vang
District 4 – Shannon Richard
District 5 – Kayla Redfoot
District 6 – Mitchell Carpentier
District 7 – Aftan Medlin
District 8 - Roger Thomas
Division 1 PPO of the Year – Kela Haynes
Division 2
District 9 – LaTrenda McPhail
District 10 – Billy Draughon
District 11 - Lisa Harden
District 12 – Jerry Williams
District 13 – Michael Helms
District 14 – Mitchell Woody
District 15 – Wendy Calvin
District 16 – Crystal Austin
Division 2 PPO of the Year – Philip Rose
Division 3
District 17 PPO of the Year – Jacob Zurita
District 18 PPO of the Year – Shamika Taylor
District 19A PPO of the Year – Shelbi Young
District 19B PPO of the Year – Ashley Hogan
District 20 PPO of the Year – Katrina D’Apice
District 21 PPO of the Year – Erika Stroughton
District 22 PPO of the Year – Caitlyn Adams
District 23 PPO of the Year – Eli Pate
Division 3 PPO of the Year – Daiquan Faulks
Division 4
District 24 PPO of the Year – Lacey McKinney
District 25 PPO of the Year – Jennifer Gragg
District 26 PPO of the Year – Shekeya Davis
District 27 PPO of the Year – Susan Newton
District 28 PPO of the Year – Crystal Booth
District 29 PPO of the Year – Alexis Fredricks
District 30 PPO of the Year – Matthew Tyson
Division 4 PPO of the Year – Mellissa Loft
Chief Probation/Parole Officers of the Year
Division 1
District 1 - Kelli Jones
District 2 - Patrese Cuthbertson
District 3 - Erin Camp
District 4 - Brian Harrington
District 5 - Lauren Pittman
District 6 - Chaka Bailey
District 7 - Michael Dean
District 8 - Bryan Casad
Division 1 CPPO of the Year – Charles Lane
Division 2
District 9 - Melissa Boyd
District 10 - Bertrille Williams
District 11 - Ali Perry
District 12 – Jerome Carr
District 13 – Jamie Williamson
District 14 – Shunika Hemingway
District 15 – John Taylor
District 16 – Wanda Jordan
Division 2 CPPO of the Year – Richard Lappin
Division 3
District 17 – Joey Tilley
District 18 – Nicole Patterson
District 19 – Samantha Browning
District 19 – Lauren Patterson
District 20 – Mary Spruill
District 21 – Tempy Tilley
District 22– Shannon Koontz
District 23- Lorie Goins
Division 3 CPPO of the Year – Daniel Attaway
Division 4
District 24 – Brandi Renfro
District 25 – Brooke Heafner
District 26 - Shakitha Johnson
District 27 – Jason Harris
District 28 – Brannon Wilson
District 29 - Darlene Mitchiner
District 30 – Johnny Rogers
Division 4 CPPO of the Year – Janel Tilghman
External Partners Awards
Division 1 – Glenn Buck with PORT Health
Division 2 – Atabaa Goodman with Coastal Horizons
Division 3,4 – Michael Gray with Insight Human Services
Special Recognition Awards for Career Progression Program
John Corwin, Lynn Freeman, Brian Gates, Robin Griffin, John Hegger, Ed Mazyck, Kevin Miller, Lori Millette, Michelle Morris, Melinda Pittman, Theresa Starling, Amie White
Administrative Professionals of the Year
Division 1 Administrative Professional of the Year - Kim Hughes
Division 2 Administrative Professional of the Year - Martha Crabtree
Division 3 Administrative Professional of the Year - Lisa McManus
Division 4 Administrative Professional of the Year - Cristi Ledford
DCS Administration Administrative Professional of the Year - Shannon Weavil
Judicial Services Coordinators/Judicial Services Specialists of the Year
Division 1 JSC of the Year – Stephanie Johnston
Division 2 JSS of the Year – Keith West
Division 3 JSS of the Year – Camilla Newland
Division 4 JSS of the Year – Stephanie Newcomb
Field Specialists of the Year
Division 1 Field Specialist of the Year – Mary Leary
Division 2 Field Specialist of the Year – Charles Lewis
Division 3 Field Specialist of the Year – Taren Hall
Division 4 Field Specialist of the Year – Michael Robichaux
Assistant Judicial District Managers of the Year
Division 1 AJDM of the Year – Tammy Edwards
Division 2 AJDM of the Year – Clark Atkins
Division 3 AJDM of the Year – Stephen Warden
Division 4 AJDM of the Year – Pondy Perry
Judicial Districts Managers of the Year
Division 1 JDM of the Year – Travis Joyner
Division 2 JDM of the Year – Celeste Kelly
Division 3 JDM of the Year – Robin Griffin
Division 4 JDM of the Year – Kevin Miller