LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — The Lexington Division of Community Corrections celebrated some new additions today as two recruiting classes graduated, officially becoming officers.
“I’ve been doing this a long time and these are the best of days that you can come together with them and mark this day, acknowledge their achievement,” said Chief of Corrections Scott Colvin.
That celebration today included 24 men and women from recruit classes 2407 and 2408. Chief Colvin shared that corrections had 133 vacancies back in 2022, but that number of vacancies has now been brought down into the 20’s.
Matt Rhoads is one of the new officers celebrating with his family today.
“I’m not originally from Lexington, I’m from upstate New York,” Officer Rhoads said, “and they came down from upstate New York to watch me walk across that stage, so it means a lot. My wonderful wife is here with me today, and it means the world to me.”
“You will remember this day and you will remember the people that were with you, and you will know in your heart that you chose something significant,” Chief Colvin said from the stage.
With the division nearing full strength, Chief Colvin hopes these new recruits can shift the goals of corrections in Lexington.
“We want the division to be viewed as a uniformed division of social workers,” he said. “We’re trained, we can establish a safe space, a controlled space in the jail to work in.”
“It's people that go through a hard time,” Officer Rhoads added, sharing one of his biggest lessons learned from training. “Really the only difference between them and me is just one bad decision, one bad mistake.”
Chief Colvin also shared that it makes him emotional to see former offenders reborn back into society.
“It’s happened, not one time, but several times, a former offender has been released from jail, and they are, they’ve joined a church, they’ve kicked their addiction, they’re reconnected to their family, they’ve got their baby with them, and they walk over and respectfully wait until they can have a word with you. Really, what I’ve always taken away from it, all these years, all the times that it’s happened, that person just wants you to see them as a whole person, and that they made it back.”
