Daniel Ward Named Superintendent For Belknap County Department
Of Corrections
Daniel Ward, who was recently the subject of a Suncook
Valley Sun story naming him Merrimack County Department of Corrections
Employee of the year, has moved from his position there to the position
of Superintendent for Belknap County Department of Corrections. His new
office became vacant after the retirement of Superintendent
Richard A. Grenier in November of 2009, after 33 years at Belknap
County. A nationwide search was conducted by the Belknap County
Administrator Debra Shackett and Human Resource Director Norman O’Neil
during which 40 applicants submitted their intent to compete in the
process. Among those 40 was Daniel Ward of Pittsfield.
Ward will be supervising approximately 70 inmates and roughly 30
employees. The inmate population consists of both pre and
post-trial inmates either awaiting court or as a result of a sentencing
order of the courts including all levels of offenders. As
Superintendent, Ward is charged with the care, custody and control of
all offenders placed under his supervision. Inmates sentenced to the HOC
can be sentenced to up to 1 year on each charge. Sentences greater
than one year are traditionally sent to the New Hampshire State Prison.
Ward will take over the supervision of a significantly experienced staff
at Belknap County DOC, most having greater than 10 years at that site.
According to Ward,this tenure and the lack of turnover is a testament to
the manner in which Belknap County DOC has operated over the years. The
employees are professional and dedicated - two key traits that
make his job as a transformational leader much easier.
Ward officially began operating at his position on Monday,
January 25, 2010.after receiving the unanimous support of the Belknap
County Board of Commissioners leaving Merrimack County DOC where
has been the Chief of Operations for the past four years. In total, Ward
served 17 years with Merrimack County DOC as an officer, corporal,
sergeant, Academy program case manager and most recently as a Captain in
his role as Chief of Operations. The role of Superintendent at Belknap
County will include many of the functions that he now fulfills - budget,
policy development and implementation, operations of the physical plant,
employment and direction of staff. The most dramatic difference is that
he now becomes the leader of the entire team. The Superintendent sets
the course and leads the team to reach the goals set forth by the County
Commissioners. Under the direction of Administrator Debra Shackett, the
department heads from the Nursing Home, Department of Corrections,
Sheriff’s Office and other County Departments will work together as a
unified group to reach the common goals.
While at Merrimack County DOC Ward has championed programs for the
inmates where they learn trades such as barbering, food service, lawn
care, and general maintenance that they can use when they return to
their communities. Substance-abuse classes, parenting skills, emotional
regulation, and a myriad of self-help programs were developed and are
offered through cooperations with the UNH Cooperative extention program,
volunteers and other professional affiliations. These programs along
with a number of alternative-to-incareceration programs that include
electronic home confinement aka bracelet program, day-reporting, and
work release will be considered for use at Belknap County DOC. The cost
of incarcerating offenders is high and Ward considers himself a steward
of taxpayer funds in finding the most efficient and economical way to
use those funds to care for the offender while ensuring that the
community is protected.
Ward lives in Pittsfield with his wife and six children. He is a
graduate of Pittsfield High School, holds a BA from UNH in Political
Science and Justice Studies and an MBA/PA from the University of
Phoenix. Ward began his career in law enforcement with the
Pittsfield Police Department in 1988 and worked with Epsom and Northwood
police while attending college. He started with Merrimack County DOC in
1993.
