GARY HINZMAN – PROFESSIONAL HISTORY
EDUCATION:
1972 – Completed Flight School for Airplane
and Helicopter.
1976 - B.A. Degree, Business Administration & Criminal
Justice, Mount Mercy College
1977 - M.A. Degree, Public Administration, Iowa
State University
EMPLOYMENT:
1989 - 2009 – Director, Sixth Judicial District Dept. of Correctional Services, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Responsible for the operation of a multi-county community-based corrections agency in east central Iowa. Services include pretrial, presentence, probation, residential/work release (3 facilities), parole and specialized programs/units. The agency’s budget is in excess of $18 million, with approximately 250 staff members supervising about 4300 clients. The Director also serves as the Executive Director for the Community Corrections Improvement Association (CCIA) a private, non-profit foundation, which provides support for community based correctional programming.
Accomplishments as Director :
- Coordinated the planning, design, and construction of community corrections facilities valued at $9 million dollars. This was accomplished by 1) establishing a public relations committee who assisted in developing and implementing a communications plan for community acceptance, 2) developing non-traditional funding sources and successfully lobbying the legislature for "seed money", and 3) successfully managing site acquisition and zoning issues.
- Developed a new “Special Services Division”. This includes the Client Services Unit, Offender Employment Unit, and High Risk Unit, as well one of nation’s top “Sex Offender Units”.
- Created a Client Services Community Advisory Board to aid in creating a "Client Services Unit”. The unit provides psychological, treatment, educational, and job development services in collaboration with community providers. This concept received the American Corrections Association's "Best Practices Recognition" in 1998.
- Created a Law Enforcement Advisory Board which aided in developing the “High-Risk Supervision Unit”. The unit is comprised of probation and parole officers certified as Iowa peace officers. All high-risk, non-compliant offenders are supervised by this unit in tandem with law enforcement. Partnered with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and local prosecutor to develop LOC-UPP, the top 25 most prolific offenders who are monitored accordingly.
- Developed one the nation’s top “Offender Employment Units” specializing in work force development. Staff employment specialists have received NIC’s highest level of training and certification.
- Created a Reentry Program for offenders with mental health issues returning to the community. Created several citizens “Community Accountability Boards” – these community professionals and volunteers re the key to the success of this program.
- Developed an array of Restorative Justice Programs. Mobilized two Restorative and Community Justice Task Forces hired a Victim Advocate, and securing funding for restorative programs for the victim, the community, and the offenders. The Sixth District offers victim/offender mediation, victim impact programs, restorative community service work, Circles of Support and Accountability, Family Team meetings, Healing Circles for Victims, and more. This ultimately led to the hiring of a Supervisor to manage these restorative activities.
- Attained designation as a “Weed & Seed” Site, and “Partnership for Safe Neighborhoods” status . The 6 th District was the lead agency in both partnerships.
- Created a private, non-profit foundation in 1991, the Community Corrections Improvement Association (CCIA) , which provides approximately $1 million in annual program operations that support community-based corrections. Gary provided leadership and direction to many initiatives through this vehicle such as:
- Developed the "Youth Leadership Program" to provide mentoring, character education, and community stewardship opportunities to at-risk youth in grades 5 through 12
- Created Peer Review Court in Linn County which serves as both a prevention and intervention program. Peer Court was one of two sites in the nation recognized by the American Bar Association in 2003.
1970 -1989 - Cedar Rapids Police Department
Worked in a variety of positions - Patrol officer, police helicopter pilot, Detective (Youth Bureau, Narcotics and Vice), Captain of Police and Director of the Cedar Rapids Police Academy, eventually working himself up to Chief of Police where he was respon sible for a budget in excess of $9 million, 220 employees and 35 reserves.
Accomplishments as Police Chief:
- Created professional development and educational requirements for career advancement.
- Created an outcome-based employee evaluation program and field training officer program.
- Created outcome-based utilization of helicopter program, reducing traffic fatalities and home burglaries.
- Created highly trained Violent Crimes Investigative Unit, reducing unsolved violent crimes to near zero.
- Instituted “performance-based budgeting” concepts.
- Increased employee salary and benefits.
1978 – 1999 – Adjunct Instructor
Mt. Mercy College; Iowa Law Enforcement Academy; Kirkwood Community College
MILITARY SERVICE:
United States Army from 1966-1968. Served in Military Police and Administration.
HONORS:
1985 - Distinguished Alumni Award, Mount Mercy College
1994 - "Service
Key Award", Iowa State University, Alumni Association
1995 – Cedar
Rapids’ Community Leader, featured in the Cedar
Rapids Gazette's Success Magazine
1996 – Sixth District Board of Directors
named the new $2M residential facility the " Gerald R. Hinzman Center".
1996 - “Community Trustee Award" , Cedar Rapids Chamber
of Commerce, Leadership for Five Seasons Program
2004 – “Outstanding Probation
Executive of 2004” , NAPE and Sam Houston State University,
George J. Beto Criminal Justice Center
OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICE:
Advisory Board for the National H.I.R.E Network of New York City for offender
employment.
Board of Directors for the Upper Midwest Community Policing Institute,
St Paul, Minnesota.
Advisory Board for the National Law Enforcement and Corrections
Partnership Council, Sam Houston State University.
PUBLICATIONS:
Authored/contributed to numerous articles (24+) for professional publications. These include Police Chief Magazine, National Institute of Corrections Topics in Community Corrections, The Executive Exchange , Perspectives, The Journal of Offender Monitoring, Weed and Seed Magazine, etc .
OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
- Appointed to the National COPS Advisory Board by Director Joe Braun 1995-1997.
- Served on the National Staff for “Regional Workshops on Law Enforcement-Corrections Partnerships” sponsored by the COPS Office, the National Institute of Justice, the Corrections Program Office, and the National Institute of Corrections. 1998-99.
- Chaired Iowa’s Commission on Community and Restorative Justice Issues, August 1997.
- Provides national leadership to the Manhattan Institute of New York, Private/Public Ventures of Philadelphia and to the National Institute of Justice as a member of the "Reinventing Probation Council” developing the framework needed for Reinventing Probation.
- Served on the National Re-entry Policy Council for APPA, CSG, and USDOJ. Served on two of the four task forces for this project. Public Safety and Restorative Activities group and also the group on workforce development. The “Report of the Reentry Council” was published in 2004.
- Facilitator, trainer, speaker for numerous other initiatives at the state/national level.