FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (21-35)

CONTACT Laura Strimple, Chief of Staff

OFFICE 402-479-5713 | laura.strimple@nebraska.gov

March 9, 2021 (Lincoln, Neb) – Five team members with the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services (NDCS) have assumed leadership and member roles in the American Correctional Association (ACA), a national organization that oversees the accreditation of prisons, jails and other detention facilities.

Director Scott R. Frakes was appointed to serve on the Response to Disruptive Behavior Committee, a group that works to identify best practices for managing high risk offenders within detention settings. He is also treasurer for the Correctional Leaders Association (CLA), an organization made up of directors and executive officers from correctional systems across the United States.

Jeremy Elder, deputy director for industries, has accepted an appointment to serve as chairperson for the Correctional Industries Committee. Elder oversees operations at Cornhusker State Industries (CSI), Federal Surplus Property and the NDCS engineering division. He is also on the board of the National Correctional Industries Association (NCIA) as vice president of marketing.

Rob Britten, of the Omaha Correctional Center (OCC), has been reappointed to serve on both the Ethics and Equal Rights committees for the ACA. Britten, a staff member with NDCS for 27 years, was first appointed to those groups in 2019. He currently manages the policy and accreditation process for OCC. Britten is also a certified auditor for the ACA, which enables him to conduct audits of other member correctional systems.

Diane Severson, NDCS director of nursing, has been appointed as chairwoman for the ACA’s Nursing Committee. She just completed two years serving as the co-chair for the same committee and has been newly elected to support the commission’s accreditation efforts in the area of health care for the next four years. 

Dr. Harbans Deol, medical director for NDCS, was elected to serve as treasurer for the executive committee of the ACA.  Deol, who has been with NDCS since 2017, is currently chair of the Coalition for Correctional Health Authorities (CCHA) and is a member of the Health Care Committee, also through the ACA.

Dr. Deol’s elected term as treasurer, as well as the other appointments to that organization will conclude at the end of 2023. 

###