Identifying Felons who have a low risk of re-offending.

I’m 38 years old, married with 3 children, and happily raising a family in Lake Country. I grew up in Southwest Minneapolis, MN. My childhood was in all accounts amazing, lots of friends and a huge family. I attribute my success to my support system, and the expectations from them. Like many of us, I had my challenges growing up, but knowing my support system would always have my back and help me through difficult times is what allowed me the ability to believe in my future and keep striving for greatness.

 I Graduated from Mankato State University, with a Major in Community Corrections, and a Minor in Law Enforcement. I started my career in the field working for one year in Washington State for a municipal probation department that hired me on after my internship with them. A year later I transferred to The Washington State Department of Community Corrections, where I worked for a little over a year.  

In 2016, I relocated to Crow Wing County for my role as a Community Corrections Agent and have supervised the following offenders on probation and supervised release: Manslaughter, Sex crimes, Assault, Domestic Assault, Drugs, DWI's, Criminal Vehicular Operation, Theft, and Property Crimes. In total, I have worked in probation for about 10 years, and pride myself as an agent who goes above and beyond for the community I serve. For example, I created The Probation Bike Program, which supplies those in need of transportation the opportunity to commute for treatment, employment, probation, and leisure activities. Another example I'm very proud of is facilitating Moral Recognition Therapy (MRT), which is a cognitive behavioral education class offered to high-risk clients in our community. MRT aims to educate clients to take ownership of their criminal behavior and works to establish higher moral standards for themselves and the people in their lives. Other important aspects of MRT include reflection, goal setting, community service, and following through with their individual commitments to themselves.

The 10 years of experience in Community Corrections has taught me a lot about what it takes a person to change their life for the better, and reflecting on all of the conversations and relationships I’ve developed leads me to the conclusion that it’s possible when people have a strong support system, attainable expectations, a desire to change and work hard, constant positive reinforcement, and lastly, the ability to make mistakes and the patience from others to grow and learn from them.