If you’re looking for a steady job that comes with a variety of benefits, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office might have just what you’re looking for.
The Sheriff’s Office needs more corrections officers, and in an effort to attract more candidates to the job, it has lowered the age limit to 18.
Working as a corrections officer is a good way to start a law enforcement career, according to Sheriff’s Office representatives.
It also can be a rewarding job, said George Cole and Amy Luebbers, both corrections officers at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro.
Cole, 55, of Pevely said he started his career as a corrections officer to better provide for his family.
“I was 28 and working on a golf course,” he said. “I was making minimum wage. A buddy of mine from church worked here and told me about the job. My wife was pregnant with our first child, and I knew we were going to need to make more money. It was kind of a financial thing to make more money and have some insurance.”
Amy Luebbers, 44, of Farmington said she was attracted to the position because she wanted to make a difference in her community.
She started out as a corrections officer with the Missouri Department of Corrections about five years ago after a 25-year career in the hospitality business, and in September, she started working at the Jefferson County Jail.
The job
Corrections officers wear many hats during a 12-hour shift, said Brenda Short, who has been the Jefferson County Jail administrator for about five and a half years after a 27-year career with the Missouri Department of Corrections.
She said corrections officers complete inmate counts at 5 a.m., 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. every day. They deliver three meals a day, collect dirty laundry and hand out fresh laundry and provide escorts to medical appointments, court appearances, parole hearings and mental health evaluations.
“It is non-stop all day,” said Short, 66, of De Soto. “We are constantly on the move, taking an inmate here, there and everywhere. It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but when you have one officer who has to escort 40 inmates throughout the day, it consumes your entire day.
“They do everything for the inmates.”
The starting salary for a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office corrections officer is $40,851.
Age requirement
Short said many corrections officers start in the field because they want a career in law enforcement, but they are not old enough to be a police officer. In Missouri, law enforcement officers must be 21.
Corrections officers at the Jefferson County Jail only have to be at least 18, a change announced April 26. Before that, candidates had to be at least 19.
That was the second time in two years the Sheriff’s Office lowered the age requirement. In 2021, the age limit was lowered from 21 to 19.
“We are struggling to find candidates,” Short said. “We have had pretty positive results with the younger age. We hired two 19-year-olds who have done remarkably well. They have shown maturity. They have made good decisions. We didn’t feel it would be a burden to lower the age limit.”
Corrections officer to cop
Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak also said working as a corrections officer is a good stepping stone to becoming a police officer.
“Later this year, we will send three corrections officers through the police academy,” he said. “That’s attributed to their hard work and performance while working in the jail. We have recently hired several corrections officers, and we know their long-term plans are to be police officers.”
“We get a lot of people who say I always wanted to be a police officer, and I think this is a good way to get my foot in the door,” Short said. “I can confirm on my side, the people who work in the jail prior to becoming a deputy are stronger deputies, in my opinion. They get a lot of training here that they wouldn’t get at the academy. The jail is hands-on.”
Sheriff’s Office spokesman Grant Bissell said the Jefferson County Jail has 39 corrections officers, including supervisors, who oversee more than 300 inmates.
He said the Sheriff’s Office is looking to fill four corrections officer jobs.
Short said an ideal candidate has shown the ability to work long-term for one employer. For younger candidates, she looks for those who attended classes regularly in high school, showed up on time consistently and performed in their classes. She also looks for candidates who held a job while going to school.
She said the Sheriff’s Office has a thorough interview process for candidates.
“You know by their answers and how they compose themselves what exactly we are going to get there,” Short said. “If we think they have potential, we will give them a shot.”
Those interested in becoming a corrections officer may learn more by going to the Sheriff’s Office website, jcsd.org, or by calling Short at 636-797-5318.
“We can schedule a tour before they want to consider the application,” Short said. “It is not like on TV. It is a whole different world.”
Jefferson County Jail corrections officers go through an eight-week training period with a veteran officer.
First-hand experience
“You get run through the wringer,” said Cole, who started as a corrections officer in June 1988 before being promoted to supervisor in September 1999. “It really is not a long period of time.”
However, the training does not stop after a corrections officer’s first two months at the jail, Luebbers said.
“Every day is on-the-job training,” she said. “We go through different scenarios during our shifts. We call it situational scenarios. We constantly quiz and test each other. We have done (Crisis Intervention Team) training. They send us through training for situations like use of force, so we learn how to prepare and properly respond. It is for our safety and the detainees’ safety as well. There is a lot of computer training. We receive constant support and training.”
Luebbers said one of the most important things to remember as a corrections officer is that there is a fine line between empathy and sympathy.
“You don’t want to be entangled in (inmates’) issues, but you want to be empathetic to what they are going through,” she said. “When we have new arrivals, they are having a bad day. When they come in, I say, ‘I know you are having a bad day. I am not here to make it worse. I am here to help you solve problems.’ That could be getting them clean clothes or a meal.”
Cole said it is important to understand some inmates may be scared when they are entering the jail.
“You have to take your time in the process and explain each step and why you are doing this and that,” he said. “You make sure they know this is not the end of the world. They will have options. You ease their mind with positivity.”
Corrections officers also have the chance to help inmates change their behavior. Luebbers said seeing an inmate’s attitude and actions change while in jail is rewarding.
“Ninety to 95 percent of these men and women (in jail) go back out into the community,” she said. “If we can help them correct their behavioral patterns, it creates success stories outside of here that benefits all of us in the community.
“Reducing risk and recidivism is a big part of the corrections aspect of law enforcement. A lot of what we do is help them recognize their patterns of behavior and help them find ways to resolve that on their own.”
Cole said a key to the job is to be fair, firm and consistent. He said it is important that when you tell an inmate yes or no, that you mean it and do not waiver from the answer.
He said that approach has led to some positive encounters with former inmates outside the jail.
“I have had folks come up to me outside of here who were some pretty tough characters while they were here, and they thank me for helping turn their lives around,” Cole said. “They say, ‘You were firm, fair and consistent. You told it like it was.’”
Luebbers said she wants people to know that corrections officers work to support inmates.
“We can be mentors and an ear to listen,” she said. “We help them grieve when they get bad news. We help them celebrate when they get good news. We try to support them with the skills and resources that we have available. We don’t want to see them worse off than they are. I want to help solve their problems.
“It is such a great team environment. If you are looking for support, structure, discipline and becoming part of a family, corrections and law enforcement is it.”
Correctional Officers Week
Jefferson County corrections officers, along with their colleagues across the country, are being celebrated this week as part of National Correctional Officers Week.
“Corrections officers seldom receive the accolades they deserve, and a majority of the public seldom considers their sacrifices,” Marshak said.
Former President Ronald Regan established National Correctional Officers Week in May 1984, according to nationaltoday.com. This year the celebration is from May 7 through May 13.
The Sheriff’s Office will purchase and give baskets filled with snacks to its corrections officers this week, Bissell said.