LEWIS RUN — While the focus was on holiday events and good food during Federal Correctional Institution-McKean annual Community Relations Christmas Party Thursday, administrators did provide a couple of news-related items to share with the community.
During his welcome to FCI-McKean community relations board members, staff and visitors at the Lewis Run facility south of Bradford, Scott Colson, acting executive assistant, announced the correctional institution will soon have a new warden and is now accepting job applications for correctional officers.
“We are getting a new warden, but he couldn’t be here with us today,” Colson told the audience. “His name is Bradley Trate and he’s coming from Washington, D.C., the central office, and we’re looking forward to him coming.”
Acting warden and associate warden over programs, John Williams, will head up the correctional institution until then.
Colson also noted a new associate warden of operations, Janet Buntz, has been assigned to the facility from the Philadelphia area. In addition, Heidy Baez-Patino, executive assistant Camp administrator, will arrive in March.
“The only other thing I really wanted to point out is we are hiring,” Colson told the gathering. “So if you know people who are interested, please encourage them to apply, but do not call the institution.”
Instead, those interested are asked to apply online at www.usajobs.gov and type in correctional officer in the search bar.
“If you just type in ‘correctional officer’ in the search bar there is a job vacancy that is constantly open” to select, Colson explained. He said the website will also ask applicants for location preferences.
He asked that those interested select FCI-McKean as their first choice in order to work at the local facility. He noted earlier that this will be the first time in three years the facility has hired new employees.
FCI-McKean, now 30 years old, is described online as a medium-security United States federal prison that houses more than 1,200 male inmates. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice. An adjacent satellite prison camp, which contains the community relations building where Thursday’s party was held, houses minimum-security male offenders.
