After 29-years of service for the Indiana Department of Corrections (IDOC), Rondle Anderson has seen offenders come and go, and knows firsthand the cycle of incarceration. Anderson vividly remembers a situation with a repeat offender that illustrated for him the important role of corrections.

“I knew a juvenile who was released from the juvenile facility where I started working and he became an adult offender,” Anderson recalls. “As he got older, and I got older, we continued to end up in the same facilities – from medium security to maximum security, I would run into him every time I was promoted. Then, I became the warden of the Indiana State Prison and I saw him when I was walking down death row. Here was this person I had known for 20 years, and he's on death row. And when it came time for the execution process – well, you can guess who had to do that.”

Anderson still recounts this story to corrections officers in training, hoping that they will understand how necessary rehabilitation is for offenders.

“If we don't pay attention to our juveniles and offenders, that is the outcome,” Anderson says. “We need to make a change – we need to change this outcome. This is why we are in this business – offenders will go from juvenile facilities to death row if we don't help them. And that is not what we are here for.”

Although Anderson's story is grim, he remains positive when it comes to corrections. Anderson's colleagues say his dedication and commitment to constantly improving corrections makes him stand out.  And Anderson's colleagues aren't the only people taking notice of his passion for corrections. He was recently awarded the IDOC award for Distinguished Service.

The Corrections Connection recently spoke with Anderson about his view of the corrections field, and how he rose through the ranks of corrections.

Q: Why did you decide to go into the corrections field?

Anderson: Well, I graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Criminal Justice, and I thought I would become a judge or something. But I was poor and hungry, and the corrections department was looking for officers. The thing is, I really started to love working in corrections. I like people and I get to be around people all the time. Of course there are problems – it would be very easy to consume those problems and become bitter. I had to learn how to balance my life out between work and home. If you want to stick it out in this business, you have to address the mind, body and spirit. You have to have faith, physical agility and experience – and I love that about corrections.

Once I got into corrections I had some great mentors – some people call them wardens – that have given me tips and insight along the way, teaching me to be more patient. They also taught me to look at things from both angles – to see both sides of a situation, from our angle to the inmate angle. Once you start to get a feel of the culture and the way it is inside of a prison, that optimism is really necessary.

Q: How do you stay positive in corrections?

Anderson: Most of all, the glass must always remain half-full. You always have to be optimistic that I see my job as jus what you're supposed to do – the right thing. The leadership roles that I have been in proved to me that I have to be a role model. We set an example for offenders and for the staff who will eventually replace us. No matter what position I was working in corrections, it was obvious that the common goal was to make these offenders into citizens. And we have to be positive to do that.

When you see these offenders and you see their problems – you look at your situation at home and you realize you don't have any real problems. Your problems are not anywhere near the magnitude that they could be. You count your blessings because you see unfortunate people who commit crimes – and you say to yourself ‘Well, my kids aren't locked up, my family is healthy, my wife is lovely and we might not be rich, but we're rich in resources.' When you look at your situation comparatively, you can't do anything but feel like you're blessed – and then you can try to help other people become successful.

Q: What do you think a positive attitude accomplishes in corrections?

Anderson: You have to stay positive because you don't want people to re-offend. I really want people to understand that we can turn people around. If we ignore that rehabilitation process, we have an ultimate thing that happens – like the juvenile that ended up on death row. We must always try to rehabilitate these offenders. That's our job. Being involved with the attitudes and the dangerousness of being on certain units – reality does kick in after awhile. We can try to do something to change the behaviors of these guys – not condone it, but help them understand that there is a better way.

When you relate to these offenders in this way – respect them and show a genuine interest in their wellbeing – they respect you back. I have always treated inmates with respect, and I have never had a situation where I got off of work and had an offender run up and threaten me for the way he was treated inside a facility.

Q: Is there anything else you would like to share with your fellow officers?

Anderson:  No man is an island. It does, in fact, take a village to help an offender. We need to use a team approach, rather than trying to accomplish things by ourselves. Utilize the resources around you – use other officers and advisers that are available. But mainly, be yourself and use your personality to your advantage. That will make all the difference in the world.

And we need to be aware of what these offenders can do; we need to understand their potential. Offenders are already punished when they are locked up; our job is not to continue punishing them. Our job is to get them to make better choices, using programs and providing them with an education and skills so they can succeed when they are released. And more than anything, remember to use your own personality combined with the resources available to you. That's positive. That will make a difference to the offenders.