HONOLULU — The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) welcomed a new class of adult corrections officers (ACO) at a graduation ceremony Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, at the State Capitol auditorium. Twenty-one graduates from Basic Corrections Recruit Class (BCRC) 24-06 completed training and will begin their careers as Adult Corrections Officers in facilities across the state.

Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Director Tommy Johnson said, “I am proud of all our graduates. They represent a new generation of corrections officers who will become future leaders in the corrections field.”

The graduating class is the sixth and final recruit training class of the year. Since the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) officially transitioned from the Department of Public Safety (PSD) at the beginning of the year, DCR doubled its recruit training classes to
six classes from three classes a year. The increase is part of DCR’s aggressive recruitment efforts to fill vacant ACO positions statewide.

A total of 136 recruits graduated from Basic Corrections Recruit Class from the six classes held this year compared to 56 recruits from the three classes last year. DCR is also aiming to hold six classes next year and thereafter.

In addition to increasing the number of recruit training classes, DCR’s broadened its recruitment efforts this year with radio spots and paid social media campaigns.
DCR also launched a multi-pronged recruitment campaign this past summer which included a movie spot shown at theaters statewide and geotargeting where moviegoers saw the same spot when they used various apps. Those who live in areas near theaters also saw the same message when streaming on mobile devices.

DCR also produced videos featuring three ACOs which have been posted on social media and the DCR website.

With this year’s recruitment efforts, the ACO vacancy rate has decreased to approximately 24% percent from 30.4%.

Currently, there are nearly 380 vacant ACO positions of the approximately 1,530 authorized positions to date.

The BCRC is an eight-week training course that includes more than 300 hours of classroom instruction and physical training. Recruits learn a variety of subjects that include standards of conduct, ethics and professionalism, report writing, interpersonal communications, maintaining security, crisis intervention, security threat groups (gangs), mental health, first aid, use of firearms, and self-defense tactics.

The Department’s mission is to provide a secure correctional environment for comprehensive rehabilitative, holistic, wraparound re-entry services including culturally based approaches, to persons sentenced to our custody and care. Our goal is to reduce recidivism and generational incarceration and enhance the safety and security of our communities.

All incoming classes receive Recruit Field Training along with Basic Corrections Training. During the final weeks of training, they go into the facility and begin their job with guidance from their training sergeants.

The 21 graduates have been assigned to the following jail and prison facilities:

Hālawa Correctional Facility: 4

Waiawa Correctional Facility: 1

Women’s Community Correctional Center: 4

Hawaiʻi Community Correctional Center: 6

Kauaʻi Community Correctional Center: 1

Oʻahu Community Correctional Center: 5

For photos and videos of the BCRC graduation, please visit the following link: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/folders/12tozzgJkyxErBKga0l0N_LFLrCGWHAny.

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Media Contact:
Rosemarie Bernardo
Public Information Officer
Hawai‘i Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
Office: 808-587-1358
Cell: 808-683-5507
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://dcr.hawaii.gov