Correctional Officer (RCCF)

State of South Dakota • Rapid City, SD

10d • Onsite

About The Position

The Correctional Officer maintains custody of women at the Rapid City Correctional Facility by enforcing institutional operations memoranda and procedures to ensure the safety and security of inmates and employees and to maintain appropriate confinement conditions. Officers are assigned to posts such as a control room, cell hall, visit room, or recreational area. New officers receive training; no prior education or experience is necessary to begin the role.

Common duties include observing and supervising inmates in cell halls, recreation areas, dining halls, school, health services, and shower rooms; assigning duties and monitoring work; preparing incident and rule-infraction reports; conducting counts and maintaining log books; escorting and transporting inmates; inspecting and searching cells, common areas, inmates, and visitors; controlling gates and cell doors; and responding to crises. The role also includes monitoring access and the facility perimeter, managing offender movement, conducting searches and inspections, inspecting mail, maintaining tool and key control, attending shift briefings, and communicating pertinent information to coworkers and supervisors. Some posts are armed and require annual firearms certification; authorized vehicle transports may also be conducted while armed.

This is a full-time, 40-hour-per-week position at the new Rapid City Women's Prison Facility. Officers work 12-hour rotating shifts, either 6 a.m.–6 p.m. or 6 p.m.–6 a.m., including every other weekend and some holidays. The work may involve assaultive behavior, physical restraint, variable noise and temperatures, outdoor work in inclement weather, and concrete-floor or -wall settings. Employees must complete all modules of South Dakota DOC Basic Training and meet its physical and competency requirements. Employment is conditional on required screening and checks, including a background investigation and drug screening; TB screening is required upon hire.

Requirements

• Must be at least 18 years old and possess a valid driver's license.
• Must successfully pass all modules of South Dakota DOC Basic Training, including English reading comprehension, competency assessments, and written and practical exams in defensive tactics and firearms/armed transport curriculum.
• Must meet the stated physical abilities for defensive tactics, including lifting arms above the head, kicking to waist height, controlling another person, delivering blows, withstanding controlled impact, turning to strike, and repeatedly kneeling and rising.
• Must be able to see and hear to observe, address, and respond to potential safety and security breaches; seize, hold, control, or subdue violent or assaultive persons and defend self or others to prevent injury.
• Must demonstrate body agility, strength in all four limbs, and ability to walk and climb stairs consistently, including walking on hard surfaces throughout a shift.
• Must be able to work 12-hour rotating shifts, including days, afternoons, nights, weekends, and holidays.
• Must be able to work in situations involving assaultive behavior, physical control of another person, and restraint situations, and interact tactfully with people with a range of moods and behaviors, including diverse populations and people who are mentally ill or emotionally disturbed.
• Must communicate effectively in spoken and written English, listen and signal as needed, communicate respectfully, and prepare comprehensive, legible written accounts of events.
• Must have intermediate computer keyboarding skills and be able to communicate via computer-based email.
• Must be able to monitor inmate whereabouts, maintain accurate counts, identify changes, inappropriate activity, hazards, or security breaches, and remain alert throughout a shift.
• Must be able to conduct searches, including general-area, metal-detector, pat, perimeter, strip, and vehicle searches, and use fingers to identify object attributes and manipulate security equipment.
• Must be able to safely operate and monitor mechanical doors and learn to use firearms, restraints, chemical agents, tasers, radios, telephones, and public-address equipment professionally and according to policy.
• Must be willing and able to respond quickly to emergencies and use physical force to control a situation when necessary.
• Must be willing to follow the chain of command and established safety and security protocols, and apply department policies and institutional post orders.
• Must be willing and able to travel.
• Must be able to work in fluctuating noise and temperatures, including outdoor work in inclement weather and work in concrete-floor or -wall settings.
• Must undergo tuberculosis screening upon hire.
• A successful applicant may be required to undergo abuse and neglect screening, a background investigation, and drug screening; offers are conditional on successful drug-screening completion.
• Must verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and complete Form I-9; the State uses E-Verify.

Nice To Haves

• High school diploma or GED.
• Knowledge of English grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
• Ability to apply effective correctional methods to prepare inmates for community reentry.
• Ability to participate in criminal justice processes related to treatment of inmates, including applying state statutes, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), and department administrative regulations, policies, standards, and guidelines.
• Ability to incorporate the South Dakota DOC mission into daily duties.
• Ability to communicate respectfully with offender families and the public and work effectively with offenders in varied situations.
• A National Career Readiness Certificate may be submitted with the application but is not required for consideration.

Responsibilities

• Maintain custody of inmates and enforce institutional procedures to ensure safety, security, and appropriate confinement conditions.
• Observe and monitor inmates in cell halls, recreation areas, dining halls, school, health services, shower rooms, and other assigned areas.
• Supervise inmates by assigning duties and monitoring work.
• Prepare reports of incidents and rule infractions; document incidents using established reporting practices and maintain log books.
• Conduct formal, informal, and emergency inmate counts and maintain accurate counts in assigned areas.
• Escort and transport inmates to and from appointments and other locations, including in authorized state vehicles while armed when required.
• Inspect and search cells, common areas, inmates, visitors, vehicles, and other areas as authorized by policy.
• Monitor and control gates, cell doors, mechanical doors, facility access, restricted areas, and the perimeter.
• Maintain controlled movement schedules for offenders and monitor visiting areas and inmate mail.
• Inspect facilities and cells to maintain health, safety, and sanitation standards.
• Respond to emergencies, including fights, medical emergencies, fires, and escapes, using established protocols and physical control when necessary.
• Maintain proper tool and key control, including storage and documentation.
• Attend shift briefings and communicate pertinent information to coworkers and supervisors.
• Learn and safely use firearms, restraints, chemical agents, tasers, and communications equipment as required by policy and assignment.
• Interpret and apply department policies, institutional post orders, and procedures.

Benefits

• Class B retirement under SDRS, with 8% matching contributions stated for officers.
• Uniforms provided.
• $0 premium employee health insurance option.
• Eleven paid holidays.
• Vacation and sick leave accrual.
• Dental, vision, and other insurance options.
• Retirement benefits.
• Veterans' Preference eligibility.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed