Former Sweet Home resident Jeremy Jewell, a lieutenant in the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, recently became the only officer of his rank in the state to earn the designation of Certified Jail Manager from the American Jail Association.
Jewell graduated from Sweet Home High School in 1995 and moved on to Linn-Benton Community College, where he majored in criminal justice. As part of the graduation requirement he interned with the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, which led to a part-time job in the Benton County Jail, and later to full-time employment in the jail in 1999.
Since then he’s moved up to corporal and sergeant and, in 2011, to lieutenant.
Jewell said he’s attained all of the certifications possible from the Oregon Department of Public Safety and this past year decided to go after the American Jail Association certification, which is held by 284 corrections professionals nationwide, including only four in Oregon.
Jewell said that process included proving training and leadership qualifications and passing a four-hour test administered by the Jail Manager Certification Commission.
The AJA certification focuses specifically on the individual and provides evidence of the individual’s competency in the field, according to the AJA website: “Certification signifies and documents the mastery of a strong level of knowledge in a specialized field. It plays a significant role in the elevation of professionalism and provides an opportunity for professional growth by encouraging education which, in turn, fosters effective management practices.”