Board Profile
Jeffrey Begue, CJM
Assistant Jail Commander Stark County Sheriff's Office
Canton, Ohio
Hello, my name is Lieutenant Jeffrey Begue, CJM. I am one of the Assistant Jail Commanders for the Stark County Sheriff's Office in Canton, Ohio. I have been a member of the AJA Board of Directors for the last two years and am a Certified Jail Manager (CJM). I am also a Veteran of the United States Navy and the Ohio Army National Guard.
I decided to enter the field of corrections and make it my career because...
I missed the camaraderie, structure, and discipline of the military. I love being around people and appreciate a challenge.
My favorite way to relax is...
spending time with my wife, Andrea, and our boys, Aeden, Roman, and Nolan. It doesn't matter what we are doing. They are the best.
One item from my personal "bucket list" is to...
play Augusta National, with my wife riding shotgun, listening to podcasts while I shank my tee shots all over the place. I don't care how many golf balls I would lose. It would be an incredible experience.
My motto is...
"Never let the dust settle." I think it's important to put ideas in motion and follow through to implementation. However, once that task is completed it's time to do more. There should never be a time when you're not trying to implement change and improvement or trying to work on a new project.
I am most proud of...
my family. They are incredible and inspire me every day. Second, my agency and the officers that I am blessed to work alongside. We are incredibly blessed to have such a solid group of men and women in our facility. I could not work with a better group of officers. They are absolutely amazing.
The most unusual job I’ve ever had was...
working on a machine called an Autoclave sterilizing thousands of pounds of biohazardous waste from our local hospitals so they could then go to the landfill. Even my worst day in corrections doesn't make me miss that job.
I felt it was important to be a member of AJA and serve on the board because...
I joined AJA because I am passionate about corrections and wanted to do my part to see our chosen profession well represented. I was very impressed early on with the members of the Board of Directors that I met at my first AJA convention in Orlando. They are some of the brightest minds in the industry, and incredibly inspiring people. It is so important to surround yourself with people that can challenge you to be better and do better. That is what led me to seek a position on the Board of Directors.
Three people living or deceased I'd invite to dinner are...
Father Mike Schmitz, Jocko Willink, and Mother Olga, with my family. Strong Catholic faith values, proven leadership qualities, and unwavering compassion toward others.
The hardest thing I've ever done is...
waiting on news from the Cleveland Clinic while my wife had open heart surgery. The longest four hours of my life.
My favorite meal is...
It's tough to beat a good burger and fries.
One piece of advice that I would give anyone considering correction as a career is...
there is no other profession that will challenge you the way that corrections will. Understand that going in. It takes a strong individual to thrive in our environment. Mentally, morally, physically, and emotionally. If you're not a strong individual, this probably isn't for you.
AJA Board of Directors
President Shawn C. Laughlin, MCJ, CJM Commander
Broomfield Police Detention & Training Center Support Services Division
Broomfield, Colorado slaughlin@broomfield.org
President-Elect Shaun Klucznik, MA, CJM
Major/Jail Administrator
Judicial Services Bureau Commander
Hernando County Sheriff’s Office
Brooksville, Florida
sklucznik@hernandosheriff.org
1st Vice President Elsie Judon, MS, CJM
Lt. Colonel/Director of Operations
Broward Sheriff's Office
Elsie_Judon@sheriff.org
2nd Vice President Lisa Peck, CJM Lieutenant Detention Division
Mesa County Sheriff's Office Grand Junction, Colorado lisa.peck@mesacounty.us
3rd Vice President Diana Knapp, MS, CCE
Director
Jackson County Department of Corrections
Kansas City, Missouri
dknapp@jacksongov.org
Secretary Sam Davis, MA, CJM Major/Jail Administrator (Retired)
Ingham County Sheriff’s Office
Official's Specialist
Michigan High School Athletic Association
East Lansing, Michigan samdavis8224@gmail.com
Treasurer Eddie K. Lance Jail Administrator (Retired) Transylvania County Sheriff’s Regional Sales Manager Southern Software, Inc Seneca, South Carolina elance@southernsoftware.com
Immediate Past President Louis A. Quiñones Jr., MS, CJM Chief of Corrections
Orange County Corrections Department
Orlando, Florida
Louis.QuinonesJr@ocfl.net
1–Year Term
Laura Bedard, PhD, CJM
Chief of Corrections
Seminole County Sheriff’s
Office Sanford, Florida lbedard@seminolesheriff.org
Sonya J. Gillespie
Chief, Employee Relations Denver Sheriff Administration Denver, Colorado sonya.gillespie@denvergov.org
Stefanie Bush, CJM Assistant Jail Administrator
Scott County Sheriff's Office - Jail Division Davenport, Iowa Stefanie.Bush@scottcountyiowa.gov
Mané Martirosyan, MSSW, CSW
Executive Administrator
Louisville Metro Department of Corrections
Louisville, Kentucky
mane.matirosyan@louisvilleky.gov
Amber Redmond, CJM
Deputy Director
Douglas County Department of Corrections
Omaha, Nebraska
amber.redmond@douglascounty-ne.gov
2–Year Term
Denise Diamond, CJM
Captain
Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office
Portland, Oregon denise.diamond@mcso.us
Jonathan Ede, MSCJ, CJM
Captain
Travis County Sheriff’s Office
Austin, Texas
jonathan.ede@traviscountytx.gov
Mark Foxall, PhD, CJM Community Service Association Director
Master of Science Program Coordinator
Director, London Study Abroad Program
University of Nebraska, Omaha School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Omaha, Nebraska
markfoxall@unomaha.edu
3-Year Term
Jeffrey M. Begue, CJM
Captain
Stark County Sheriff's Office
Canton, Ohio
290@starksheriff.org
Dorothy Harris, MBA, CJM
Major
Charleston County Juvenile Detention Center
North Charleston, South Carolina
dharris@charlestoncounty.org
Fred W. Meyer, MA, CJM, CCHP
Deputy Chief (Retired)
Managing Director, NCCHC Resources
National Commission on Correctional Health Care
Las Vegas, NV
fredmeyer@ncchcresources.org
Jared Schechter, MS, CJM, CCM
Colonel, Jail Administrator
Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office
Wichita, KS
jared.schechter@sedgwick.gov
Parliamentarian Marsha Travis, CJM, CCM
Director of Standards & Accountability
Davidson County Sheriff's Office
Nashville, Tennessee
Marsha.Travis@nashvillesheriff.gov
Legal Counsel Ashley Miller Hernando County Sheriff’s Office Brooksville, Florida amiller@hernandosheriff.org
Medical Advisor
Marc Stern, MD, MPH
Affiliate Assistant Professor
University of Washington, School of Public Health
Hans Rosling Center for Population Health
Seattle, Washington
marcstern@live.com
Chaplain Linda Ahrens, MBA, BGEA Founding Volunteer Chaplain for Staff Cook County Sheriff's Office Chicago, Illinois lindaahrens_1@yahoo.com
Executive Director Chris D. Daniels, MPA, CAE American Jail Association Hagerstown, Maryland chrisd@aja.org