Salary: $131,076.00 Annually
Location : Walla Walla County - Walla Walla, WA
Job Type: Full Time - Permanent
Job Number:
Department: Dept. of Corrections
Division: Prisons - WSP
Opening Date: 06/03/2026
Closing Date: 6/14/2026 10:00 AM Pacific

Description
Associate Superintendent - WSP

Exempt Band 3

Location: Washington State Penitentiary | Walla Walla, WA

Salary: $131,076 Annually
The Department of Corrections is seeking highly motivated and qualified individual as an Associate Superintendent at Washington State Penitentiary (WSP)

The Associate Superintendent will serve as one of the executive level staff for a correctional facility housing and managing adult incarcerated individuals across minimum to medium custody levels. This role is responsible for setting the strategic direction of the institution while ensuring safe, secure, and effective daily operations.
The candidate of choice will provide overall leadership, planning, and vision in alignment with the agency's mission to improve public safety. The position directs all institutional operations, including fiscal management, classification, plant maintenance, safety and sanitation, educational and vocational programming, work programs, and security and custody functions. This leader ensures operational excellence while fostering an environment that supports accountability, rehabilitation, and positive outcomes.
Success in this role requires strong collaboration and partnership. The Associate Superintendent works closely with other agency divisions operating within the facility, including Health Services, Administrative Operations, Incarcerated Individual Change, Community Corrections, and Correctional Industries, to ensure seamless integration of services and programs. Through thoughtful leadership and cross-functional coordination, this position ensures that the institution operates cohesively and effectively in support of both public safety and individual transformation.
A completed application packet will include:

• A cover letter regarding your interest in this position with our agency
• A detailed resume
• Three professional references

Duties
Under the direction of the Superintendent, the Associate Superintendent of WSP/ East Complex, working independently with the other facility Associate Superintendents, is directly responsible and accountable for the overall administrative, budget control, leadership and management of multiple, diverse areas within the facility to include: All Minimum Security living unit operation, Resolutions, Records, Hearings, Securus, Recreation Chemical Dependency Liaison, Community Programs, Mailroom, Property, Visting Program, off-site crews, and EC Shift Office. Ensures compliance with the Department Directives, mission, values, and key goals.

As one of the three Associate Superintendents this position may have delegated authority for most of the decisions needed to manage facility operations within their area of responsibility which may include various areas of the contractors, and other related agencies. May serve as the Superintendent during the Superintendent's absence on a rotational basis with other Facility Duty Officers.

The Associate Superintendent manages and directs all the on-site and off-site operations ensuring business is conducted consistently with established safety and security instructions. Requiring sound correctional knowledge, skills and abilities of advanced level management work, the Associate Superintendent's scope of authority and impact encompasses the entire facility with significant impact both within and outside state government.

This Position serves as a key member of the Superintendent's Executive Leadership Team, serves as a Superintendent designee during appointing authority absence. The incumbent's focus will be on strategic local and department decisions. Develops biennial budget decision packages while managing and controlling large portions of allotted facility budget. Develop, implement and monitor policies, local operational memorandums and procedures that provide operational and security direction for staff and offenders Ensure compliance with department directives, mission, values, and key goals.

At the direction of the Superintendent, the Associate Superintendent will be responsible for any combination of the following areas: a variety of direct incarcerated services, including coordination of physical plant maintenance/construction; inmate work/ training and activity programs; volunteer programs; religious; records; classification; individual management; operation of the general population; emergency response coordination; security and safety operations of the institution; coordinating the delivery of the support services; staff training an safety program.

Responsible for establishing, maintaining, and enhancing relationships and partnerships within the community including local city and state agencies, law enforcement, Senator and State Representative and other influencing individuals and organizations. Decisions made by this position involve daily routine operations of the facility and decisions made in emergent situations, which could have a significant legal, fiscal and liability impact to the entire Department and State.

Associate Superintendents are accountable to:

• Act as the Superintendent's designee during appointing authority absences
• Plan, lead, organize, and control the daily work performed by the organization
• Administer, monitor and oversee operations, safety, security, and emergency response activities in a correctional facility
• Ensure clean and safe facility operations
• Support effective communications throughout the organization
• Provide and manage 2-way communication between all levels of staff and offenders
• Balance the facility mission and objectives within budgeted resources
• Maintain the highest standards of personal/ professional and ethical conduct and support the state's goals for a diverse workforce
• Provide a working environment free from discrimination and harassment that promotes diversity
• Develop operational goals and working objectives and ensure those objectives are reached
• Strengthen public confidence in the integrity of facility staff be demonstrating and setting the tone for the spirit and the letter of the law
• Promote an environment of public trust free from fraud, abuse of authority, and misuse of public property
• Respect and protect privileged information accessible through the course of official duties
• Ensure that no offender or group of offenders is given control or authority over the other offenders with the exception of active sanctions within the context of a Therapeutic Community
• Develop and direct implantation plans to respond to sudden shifts in custody and security requirements that require significant changes in policies, procedures, and staff training.
• Monitor application of federal and state laws, administration of rules, regulations, and orders of other procedures comply with the CBA
• Develop the Emergency Response Plan and mange staff training and drills to ensure institutional readiness to respond to a wide variety of emergencies
• Facilitate and encourage public information and education activities by conducting tours, speaking to community groups, and by providing written information concerning operations
• Encourage community agencies that the facility has contact with to participate in policy development, coordinated planning, and interagency consultation

Duty Officer:

• Serves in the capacity of capacity and makes decisions for incidents that occur at the facility level, on a rotational basis. Determines how, in an emergency, incident, or significant event, the facility's operations are managed, authorizes activities and provides direction to all facilities and community corrections offices outside of normal business hours
• Open and assumes command of the Facility Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in the event of a major emergency or disaster. Serve as an Incident Commander during emergencies, with responsibilities to manage the facilities response and recovery from critical incidents and significant events. Determines allocation of resources and personnel, management of the incident.

Qualifications
Required Qualifications

High school diploma or equivalent;

Five (5) or more years of broad based, progressive managerial or administrative (operational) experience (Managerial and/ or operational experience level is defined as the CMP, Captain, CUS or equivalent level), which includes supervisory experience in a multi-level custody, adult corrections environment and experience in at least five (5) of the following areas:

• Emergency Management (Incident Command System) and contingency planning.
• Security Management
• Prisons programs
• Sustainability, evidence-based programs
• Correctional practice
• Theory and law.
• Budget administration and development.
• Offender classification processes and policy.
• Labor relations.
• Public relation methods and application; and/ or training and staff development.
• Experience working with unions.

Desired Qualifications

Satisfactory completion of two (2) years of college (60 semester or 90 quarter credits) from a college or university whose accreditation is recognized by the council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or the US Department of Education or foreign equivalent;

Three (3) or more years of broad based, progressive managerial or administrative (operational) experience (Managerial and/ or operational experience level is defined as the CMP, Captain, CUS or equivalent level), which includes supervisory experience in a multi-level custody, adult corrections environment and experience in at least five (5) of the following areas:

• Emergency Management (Incident Command System) and contingency planning.
• Security Management
• Prisons programs
• Sustainability, evidence-based programs
• Correctional practice
• Theory and law.
• Budget administration and development.
• Offender classification processes and policy.
• Labor relations.
• Public relation methods and application; and/ or training and staff development.
• Experience working with unions.

One (1) years of experience in Unit Team Management (the Unit Team is a multi-3 important disciplinary group of staff that manages the security, classification and programs of all offenders assigned to an offender living unit. The Unit Team is typically composed of a CUS, Correctional Sergeant, Classification Counselors, a support staff and Correctional Officers. Through the effective use of the unit team of the providing for a safe and effective unit operation).

• Effective project management skills and Quality Improvement Analysis (critical thinking).
• Organization and time management skills
• Conflict resolutions skills and abilities
• Working knowledge of policies, procedures, CBA's, WAC's and RCW's
• Ability to be calm and thoughtful in emergent situations
• Working knowledge of LEAN practices and how to apply them in a large-scale organization to improve business practices
• Experience in budget administration and development
• Experience working with minimum security camp offenders to include off-site work crews
• Professional experience in working with mentally ill offenders

Supplemental Information