Governor Rick Snyder appointed Heidi E. Washington as the director of the Michigan Department of Corrections in 2015 and she was then reappointed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in 2019. As director, she is responsible for overseeing the administration of Michigan’s correctional system, which includes the state’s prisons, probation and parole supervision, the Parole Board, and other administrative functions, in addition to managing a $1.9 billion budget.
Director Washington has served in a number of leadership positions during her career with the Department of Corrections. Prior to her appointment as director, she was warden of the Charles E. Egeler Reception and Guidance Center and the Duane L. Waters Health Center. She also held positions as warden of Robert Scott Correctional Facility and administrative assistant to the department’s executive bureau and director, where she provided oversight for the Legislative Affairs Office and represented the MDOC before the Legislature. She has additionally served as acting assistant deputy director, overseeing the 19 prison facilities in the southern region of the state, and acting operations administrator for the Correctional Facilities Administration. She joined the MDOC in 1998 as a legislative assistant after working for the legislature for several years.
Director Washington holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Michigan State University and a law degree from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. In 2017, she was named Public Official of the Year by Habitat for Humanity of Michigan for her outstanding vision, dedication and commitment to excellence, and she was also named the Newsmaker of the Year by the Grand Rapids Business Journal for creating the Vocational Village, the nation’s first skilled trades training center for prisoners. In 2018, she was honored to receive the national Tom Clements Award for her vision and innovation in corrections. Director Washington also serves on the Executive Committee for the Correctional Leaders Association as well as serving as their Midwest Regional Representative. She also serves as a Task Force member for the IJIS Institute (Integrated Justice Information Systems), a nonprofit alliance working to promote and enable technology in the public sector.
We have accomplished a lot together in our first five years, but we are just getting started. Will you support the Council as we build bridges across ideological divides and craft consensus for solutions?
