Oregon’s Colette Peters Tabbed as New Federal Prison Director

By CN Staff

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Attorney General Merrick Garland has selected Colette S. Peters to serve as the next (and 12th) Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). Ms. Peters currently serves as Director of the Oregon Department of Corrections (ODOC) and provides oversight of an agency with 4,700 employees; a biennial budget of $2 billion; and responsibility for managing 14,700 incarcerated adults in 14 prisons across the state.

Ms. Peters has 30 years of experience in public safety and has been the Director of the Oregon Department of Corrections (ODOC) since 2012. She is the first woman to serve as ODOC Director and is also the Chair of the National Institute of Corrections Advisory Board and a past Vice President of the Association of State Correctional Administrators.

She began her career in public safety as a Victim Advocate and Crisis Mediator with the Denver Police Department. She was Director of Public Affairs for ODOC from 2004-2006, and the Department’s Assistant Director for Public Services and Inspector General from 2006-2008. From 2009-2012, she was Director of the Oregon Youth Authority, the state agency responsible for providing custody, rehabilitation, and treatment services to youth ages 12-24 who committed crimes prior to their 18th birthday. She holds a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Colorado in Denver, and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the College of Saint Benedict in Saint Joseph, Minnesota.

In announcing the appointment, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco stated, “Colette Peters has the experience and judgment to help BOP fulfill its important mission of providing both safe detention and meaningful preparation for those in custody reentering society. I look forward to working with her.”

“I would also like to thank Director Carvajal for his years of dedicated service and for his assistance during this transition. I wish him nothing but the best in his retirement,” she added.

The BOP looks forward to welcoming its new Director as she transitions into her new role in early August.