FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 1, 2016

CONTACT: pressoffice@doc.nyc.gov, (718) 546-0631

 

  

New Cadet Program Paves Exclusive DOC Career Paths for Students at John Jay College of Criminal Justice


East Elmhurst, N.Y.—  Starting this semester, 21 students from John Jay College of Criminal Justice will be participating in the New York City Department of Correction’s first-ever college cadet program. The program, called Cadet Education, Empowerment and Development for Success program (CEEDS), provides students interested in law enforcement and correctional studies with a targeted, exclusive career path to becoming a city Correction Officer while earning a college degree.

 

Launched in October, CEEDS will provide its first group of 21 cadets with a head start in DOC careers through classroom preparation, mentorship, and experiential learning, plus a stipend of up to $5,000 each semester for their educational expenses.

 

“This new program will help the Department mold future leaders of DOC and the City of New York, said Commissioner Joseph Ponte of the New York City Department of Correction.  “It is the result of months of strategic planning and an unprecedented partnership with John Jay College of Criminal Justice. This program was designed to ensure a pipeline of trained and mentored candidates who will become correction officers and future leaders at the NYCDOC.”

 

CEEDS cadets will go through exclusive college course curriculum in law enforcement and will work 20 hours a week at DOC facilities, where they will receive individualized mentorship from a ranking officer and be to exposed to all disciplines of corrections, which include administration, security, operations, programming and mental health. Cadets will also have the opportunity to take part in seminars, focus groups and trainings that are offered to DOC civilian and uniformed staff.  

 

“It was so exciting to meet the first class of correction cadets -- smart John Jay students committed to public service,” said Jeremy Travis, President of John Jay College of Criminal Justice. “This new educational partnership between John Jay and the Department of Correction will provide opportunities for hundreds of John Jay students to join the corrections profession. New York City is the beneficiary.”

 

Cadets, who successfully complete CEEDS, pass the Correction Officer exam, and graduate from the Correction Academy, will have an exciting DOC career waiting for them after graduation. Each school year, John Jay College and DOC  will select upper classmen students as cadet candidates based on their academic background, application and interview.  The program hopes to have 100 new cadets in fall 2017. Interested John Jay College students can apply for CEEDS by visiting: www.jjay.cuny.edu/nycdoc-ceeds.

 

About the New York City Department of Correction

 

The New York City Department of Correction (DOC) provides for the care, custody, and control of persons accused of crimes or convicted and sentenced to one year or less of jail time. The Department manages 12 person in custody facilities, 9 of which are located on Rikers Island.  In addition, the Department operates two hospital Prison Wards (Bellevue and Elmhurst hospitals) and court holding facilities in each borough. During Fiscal Year 2016, the Department handled over 63,000 admissions and managed an average daily person in custody population of approximately 9,790 individuals.

 

About John Jay College of Criminal Justice

An international leader in educating for justice, John Jay College of Criminal Justice of The City University of New York offers a rich liberal arts and professional studies curriculum to upwards of 15,000 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 135 nations.  In teaching, scholarship and research, the College approaches justice as an applied art and science in service to society and as an ongoing conversation about fundamental human desires for fairness, equality and the rule of law. For more information, visit www.jjay.cuny.edu.