Similar to school-based military programs, some counties in other states are establishing criminal justice readiness and recruitment programs to bolster the pipeline of correctional officers into detention centers. 

Faced with high turnover rates and staffing shortages, some jurisdictions across the country are lowering the minimum age for applicants to work in a prison or jail. While the approach aims to fill gaps in staffing, there is some debate over the appropriate age for candidates for particularly demanding jobs. A recent Route-Fifty article highlights various recruitment strategies as well as the challenges and successes that come with hiring younger workers in the corrections field.

Regarding the hiring policies, some advocates of hiring younger individuals claim that if an 18-year-old candidate can join the military, then they should be considered eligible to be a correctional officer. Opponents believe the maturity level to work in a detention center environment is not in place for teenage candidates. Regardless many programs have moved forward with some of the schools offering certifications for detention center roles that can also double as college credit.

From the article, an eighteen-year-old correctional officer in Smith County, Texas, reflected on how different the detention center is than what is portrayed in the media.

Taylor, who has worked in Smith County for close to eight months, said the experience of working in a jail has been quite different from what she imagined. Based on the true-crime television shows she had watched, she pictured jail as a scary place, filled with violence and chaos. In reality, she said, jail is a highly controlled environment, and her fellow prison guards are always ready to help her when an inmate acts out or has a medical emergency.

Another account from the article focuses on a sheriff who has seen both older and younger candidates who lack the maturity to work in a detention center.

He said that he is careful to screen out applicants who can’t handle the stress of working in a jail. And new officers are paired with an experienced jailer for several weeks before they go off on their own.“There are certain 18-year-olds who I would not put in a pod, and then there are some who are more mature than the 40 year olds,” Forbis said.

In Maryland, while local detention centers can hire 18-year-old candidates, the state prison facilities must recruit candidates who are 21 years of age at the time of hire. Legislation was proposed by the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services in 2023, to lower the eligible age to 19, but that bill did not pass. Additionally, there are a handful of high schools in Maryland with career readiness programs that focus on criminal justice. Still, none of those programs explicitly promote corrections despite offering programs for police officers. In Virginia, however, some public safety recruitment programs even require detention center training before moving on to law enforcement programs.

With a substantial focus on college and career readiness it will be important to see how the Blueprint for Maryland’s future might be able to roll out similar programs with the potential to funnel students into vital government jobs. Recent studies from the Pew Research Center shows that Gen Z in particular shows a tendency to believe the government should play a role in societal change. This alludes to a potential connection between the work of local detention centers and and providing support to some of society’s’ most vulnerable and service-dependant members.