Mayor Linda Gorton has named Scott Colvin, a corrections professional with over 34 years of experience, as the new Director of Community Corrections. He will be replacing former Director Lisa Farmer, who retired at the beginning of this month.
“Scott Colvin has extensive experience and the training to help us address the challenges we are facing at the Detention Center,” Gorton said. “He knows our facility, and many of the Corrections officers. Scott is a good fit for us.”
“We’re looking forward to the experience and knowledge that Director Colvin will be bringing back to Lexington,” Public Safety Commissioner Ken Armstrong said. “We believe his leadership abilities will be paramount in addressing a number of issues that are present at the Division of Community Corrections.”
Colvin previously served as the Deputy Director of the Division of Community Corrections between 2013 and 2016, focusing on officer training and leadership development. Prior to 2013, Colvin served as the Chief Deputy of the Kenton County Detention Center, and was a Captain with Louisville Metro Corrections, where he began his career in community corrections. While with Kenton County, Colvin achieved the designation as a Certified Jail Manager by the American Jail Association, a first for a corrections professional in Kentucky. Colvin, a Louisville native, is also a veteran of the United States Marine Corps.
After serving in Lexington in 2016, Colvin took a senior leadership position with the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office in Louisiana, overseeing their corrections department. Colvin will be leaving his current position as the Senior Warden of the corrections center in Lincoln County, New Mexico, to return to Lexington.
“I very much look forward to serving the citizens of Lexington alongside the well-trained, hardworking and committed corrections professionals currently operating within the Division,” Colvin said. “With this team, I am confident that we can move the Division forward, solve our challenges, and continue to professionally evolve into one of the premier municipal corrections departments in the United States.”
Colvin and his wife, Rhonda, also a Kentucky native, will be moving back to Kentucky and will enjoy being closer to their daughter, a professional speech pathologist in Georgia. Colvin will be assuming his new role as the Director in mid-November, Rodney Ballard will continue as the Interim Director until that time.
