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Joan Palmateer to lead newest prison, Coffee Creek Correctional Facility
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 3, 2001
Oregon Department of Corrections Director Dave Cook today announced the appointment of Oregon State Penitentiary Superintendent Joan Palmateer to lead the state´s newest prison, Coffee Creek Correctional Facility.
Coffee Creek is a 1252-bed women´s prison and co-gender intake center under construction near Wilsonville.
In a collateral move, he also appointed Stan Czerniak of the Florida Department of Corrections to succeed Ms. Palmateer at the 134-year-old Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem, the state´s only maximum-security prison.
"Not only is Joan Palmateer an outstanding leader and prison manager, she brings the right mix of security experience and knowledge of women´s issues to the job at Coffee Creek," said Director Cook in announcing the appointments. "Stan Czerniak is a great addition to the department. He is a knowledgeable, committed professional who will add his leadership to an excellent Oregon corrections team."
Ms. Palmateer was selected to fill the most challenging prison superintendent position in the state due to her strong track record in security and, according to Director Cook, "innovative thinking." Following a multitude of construction and start-up tasks where she will have the opportunity to mold a culture and organization, she will oversee a staff of about 450 corrections professionals who will supervise both male and female multi-custody inmates.
A well-respected veteran of the Oregon Department of Corrections, Ms. Palmateer began her career at Oregon Women´s Correctional Center as a correctional officer in 1980 and progressed there to corporal, sergeant, and security manager. She was also security manager and assistant superintendent at Oregon State Correctional Institution and Shutter Creek Correctional Institution respectively. She is the first female superintendent of Oregon State Penitentiary, and was appointed to that position in 1998. She is also a national authority on prison security and is a consultant with the National Institute of Corrections and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Ms. Palmateer has won numerous awards for her work in corrections, and in September received the Department of Corrections´ highest award, the Amos Reed Award, for her leadership abilities. In December the Oregon Film Commission recognized her work on bringing the feature film "Bandits" to Oregon with the 2000 Governor´s Film Advocate Award.
Stan Czerniak is the Florida DOC´s deputy director of Institutions and is responsible, among other things, for all statewide classification, admissions, sentencing, inmate transportation, records, visiting, and community work programs. He was formerly the department´s assistant secretary for operations, supervising the day-to-day work of 53 major prisons, work camps and work release centers.
Between 1977 and 1995 he held several high-level prison administration positions including prison superintendent/warden/administrator positions in Florida and Arizona. Mr. Czerniak has extensive consulting experience with the National Institute of Corrections and the American Correctional Association. He holds a masters degree in administration and organizational development from George Williams College in Illinois.
The new appointments become effective February 1.
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