Sheriff seeks four correctional cadet positions to recruit high-school graduates

Montgomery County Sheriff Derek Cunningham asked commissioners to establish four correctional cadet positions, pay grade AL-3, to recruit 18-year-olds directly from high school and create a career pathway into corrections.

The sheriff said the cadet positions are intended as a "stepping stone" so 18-year-olds can be hired, work with corrections officers and then convert to trainee status at 19 and to full correctional officer status after academy training. "This is not trying to establish more jobs," the sheriff said, explaining the county would take four of the openings from roughly 30 existing vacancies.

Commissioners expressed support for recruiting earlier. One commissioner said capturing candidates "straight out of high school is a powerful opportunity," and cited local outreach already underway with schools.

The meeting record shows the sheriff said funding for the positions is already available and that the cadet allocation will be removed when positions are exhausted. No formal vote on the item was recorded that day.

Clarifying details from the discussion: the proposal would create four cadet positions allocated from existing vacancy counts; cadets would be 18 at hire, move to trainee status at 19, and then to full correctional officer after completing the academy. The sheriff said the county has about 30 current vacancies overall and that these four would come from that pool.

There were no ordinances, pay-scale sheets, or effective dates presented in the meeting minutes; commissioners asked staff to include the item on a future agenda if formal action is needed.