MAYOR BLOOMBERG AND CORRECTION COMMISSIONER SCHRIRO PRESIDE OVER MEDAL DAY CEREMONY Annual Event Honors Extraordinary Service of New York City Department of Correction Staff
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Correction Commissioner Dora B. Schriro presided over the annual Medal Day ceremony on Rikers Island this morning in the auditorium of the George Motchan Detention Center on Rikers Island where 25 members and four commands were cited for extraordinary service to the Department and the City of New York.
“In emergencies both on- and off-duty, including during the unprecedented challenges presented by Hurricane Sandy, every medal award winner has displayed the bravery, presence of mind and dedication to duty that are in the finest traditions of this great department,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “All the acts of valor that we’re honoring today also exemplify the key, but unfortunately often overlooked, role that the Boldest play in keeping us the undisputed safest big city in the nation; New York today is safer than it’s been at any time in recent history.”
“The Correction Department is rich in dedicated Correction professionals and today we stop to showcase leaders throughout our ranks whose character and conduct at work and in the community bring honor to our agency,” said Commissioner Dora B. Schriro. “Our Department embodies the best in jail systems across the country and our Medal Day recipients and other honorees are among the very best in the field of Correction.”
Among this year’s award recipients was Assistant Deputy Warden Shon Brown, who joined the department in 1996 and is assigned to the Manhattan Detention Center. ADW Brown received an Exceptional Merit Award, given for an act of exceptional bravery in the line of duty or off duty, for helping to rescue a pregnant woman and her 17-month-old baby after their car overturned on the New Jersey Turnpike on Father’s Day 2013. The woman, Sonia Jones, was present at the ceremony.
Another award recipient is Francis Torres, the Department’s Executive Director of Educational Services, who is one of two recipients of this year’s Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Correction, established in 2011 and presented to members of the Department whose performance on the job and in the community is exceptional. Torres began working on Rikers Island in 1992 as a literacy instructor and program coordinator. As Executive Director of Educational Services, she helped coordinate the efforts of DOC and the Department of Education, this year producing the best results ever for the East River Academy (ERA), a District 79 high school on Rikers Island. ERA’s graduation on June 25 saw a record ten high school diplomas given out and 24 GED certificates.
The school year also saw the Adolescent Behavioral Learning Experience (ABLE ) program launched at ERA. ABLE, which is funded by the nation’s first social impact bonds, is an evidence-based program that seeks to reduce recidivism by improving student’s personal responsibility skills and decision making.
A complete list of today’s honorees appears at the bottom of this release.
The New York City Department of Correction has an average daily inmate population of about 11,500 inmates—more than many state correctional systems. About 10,000 inmates are incarcerated on Rikers Island, which has ten individual jail facilities. The Department also operates four borough facilities, 16 court detention facilities and two hospital prison wards at Elmhurst General Hospital and Bellevue Hospital. The borough jails in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx have a combined capacity of approximately 3,000 prisoners. Mayor Bloomberg appointed Commissioner Schriro on September 21, 2009.
Complete List of Honorees – NYC Department of Correction Medal Day 2013
MEDAL OF HONOR
CORRECTION OFFICER SALVATOR AYALA
CORRECTION OFFICER DANIEL RIORDAN
EXCEPTIONAL MERIT
ASSISTANT DEPTUY WARDEN SHON BROWN
CORRECTION OFFICER ANTHONY DAPOLITO
CORRECTION OFFICER EAMON LYNCH
CORRECTION OFFICER WILLIAM HILLE
MERITORIOUS DUTY
CAPTAIN DENISE VARONA
CAPTAIN FRANCISCO MEDINA
CAPTAIN ERIC LYNCH
CORRECTION OFFICER LANGSTON, CYNTHIA
CORRECTION OFFICER GENEVIEVE BISHOP
CORRECTION OFFICER EMMA HARRELL-SIMMONS
CORRECTION OFFICER LEE MITCHELL
CORRECTION OFFICER ROXANNE MALONE
MAYOR’S AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN CORRECTION
CORRECTION OFFICER EUNICE ELLIS
FRANCIS TORRES, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION SERVICES
SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD
CORRECTIONAL PEACE OFFICERS FOUNDATION
OPERATIONS RIBBON
CAPTAIN NATHANIEL BIALEK
CAPTAIN SONAI RIVERA
CAPTAIN MAYRA BURGOS
CORRECTION OFFICER SALEES SALES
ASSISTANT DEPUTY WARDEN/DEPUTY WARDENS ASSOCIATION
JANICE JACKSON HUMANITARIAN AWARD
WARDEN JAMES PERRINO
DOMINICK SCHIANO OUTSTANDING CAREER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
DEPUTY WARDEN WILLIAM D. COLON
WILLIAM HEIDENREICH OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
ASSISTANT DEPUTY WARDEN NICASIO A. VELAZQUEZ
CORRECTION CAPTAINS ASSOCIATION
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD
CAPTAIN HANNIVAL SERRANO
ALFRED MANDANICI COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD
CAPTAIN JULIE PURVIS
CORRECTION OFFICERS’ BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION AWARD
CORRECTION OFFICER CYNTHIA LANGSTON
CORRECTION OFFICER GENEVIEVE BISHOP
CORRECTION OFFICER EMMA HARRELL-SIMMONS
UNIT CITATION
EDUCATIONAL SERVICES UNIT
TRANSPORTATION DIVISION
SPECIAL OPERATIONS DIVISION
SUPPORT SERVICES DIVISION
