Award names Lorain County Adult Probation top pretrial diversion program in Ohio

The Lorain County Adult Probation program won the 2025 Clifford Skeen Award for top prison diversion program in the state at the annual Ohio Justice Alliance for Community Corrections conference on Oct. 9 in Columbus. The award is presented annually by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction to recognize excellence in community corrections. Lorain County Adult Probation was one of three programs nominated by ODRC and the Bureau of Community Sanctions, or BCS. The award "acknowledges the hard work and the dedication (Adult Probation) staff do on a daily basis, while implementing evidence-based practices and cognitive behavior interventions," Adult Probation said in a news release. "The award highlights the intensive supervised probation units, both felony and misdemeanor, as well as the jail diversion program, who work with high-risk/high-need individuals." "The department received this award due to their audit scores relating to performance and outcome measures. The award also recognizes the cognitive behavioral programming offered to probationers, while acknowledging the department's continued efforts to implement new initiatives and addressing ongoing barriers," such as its second chance career fair that links those on probation/under community control sanctions with local employers and resources, Adult Probation said. Staff previously has been honored with the National Alliance on Mental Illness Officer of the Year Award in 2022, given to Spencer Grummel; the 2023 George Farmer Line Officer of the Year Award for Probation Officer PJ Newbert and the same award in 2024 for Probation Officer Seamus Winchester. Adult Probation previously won the Clifford Skeen Award in 1994 and 2017 and has been nominated on several other occasions. "As director, I am extremely proud of the department and the work that we do. The staff are selfless and care deeply about improving the lives they touch, while building a stronger and safer community in Lorain County," Adult Probation Director JoEllen Mitchell said in a news release. "The department will continue to be committed by focusing on evidence based practices, enhanced community supervision strategies and new initiatives." The Clifford Skeen Award was started by former Gov. George Voinovich's administration for showing commitment to community corrections as a viable alternative to incarceration. It aims to reduce the number of nonviolent offenders being sentenced to a state correctional institution while improving community supervision. The award is named for the late eight-term Ohio representative who sponsored the Community Correction Act passed by the Ohio Legislature in 1979. The Lorain-Medina Community Based Correctional Facility in Elyria won the Clifford Skeen award for best community-based correctional facility in the state in 2016 and was one of three finalists in 2022.