Board of Directors
The SAW Project is guided by a Board of Directors and Advisory Board with members who are respected for their collective experience in community corrections, including exposure to and knowledge of best practices from around the world.
SAW Project Board of Directors and Advisory Board
Michelle Carpentier
Board of Directors
Michelle Carpentier began her career in 1984 as a Correctional Officer after receiving a bachelor’s degree in Criminology at the University of Montreal in Quebec, Canada. She has held various frontline positions while working with the correctional service, including Parole Officer, Program Officer, Offender Employability Manager and Learning Programs Director, in addition to senior management positions including Director of Information Sharing and Director of Intergovernmental Relations. During her career, Michelle had the rewarding experience of spending 20 months on a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Haiti as a Senior Correctional Advisor and Mentor. From 2016 to 2020, she served as the Executive Director of the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA), working with the Board of Directors and ICPA members to advance professional and humane prisons and corrections worldwide. She continues working with agencies worldwide to further support improved program designs and collaborative efforts.
Veronica Ballard Cunningham
Board of Directors
Veronica Ballard Cunningham is the Executive Director of the American Probation and Parole Association (APPA), a professional membership association made up of over 30,000 probation, parole, and pretrial professionals at all levels in the juvenile and adult sectors as well as judges, educators, researchers, and law enforcement officials. As APPA’s chief executive officer, she manages operations and supports the strategic direction of the Association, which offers professional development, technical assistance, advocacy support, and education on best practices in community corrections. Veronica has a master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Louisiana State University and has worked as a justice-system practitioner and reentry professional for more than 30 years. She has held top leadership positions at two of the largest community corrections agencies in the country – Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Parole and Cook County Adult Probation Department (Chicago). Veronica is a member of a number of national and international professional justice organizations including the World Congress Advisory Group which provides strategic direction and leadership to the biennial World Congress on Probation. She serves on several think tanks, task forces, and non-profit boards; and has performed related work in the private and not-for-profit sectors, including the Vera Institute of Justice. She is the recipient of numerous awards and has been published in various justice industry journals.
Patricia O'Hagan
Board of Directors
Patricia O’Hagan is an entrepreneur and corrections technologist with more than 20 years of experience designing software products for the corrections industry. She is co-founder and former CEO of Core Systems, a software company that is a world leader in prisoner self-service technology. Through Core Systems, Patricia drove innovation that put technology in the hands of people in prison, providing them with meaningful opportunities to prepare for reentry into an increasingly digital world. Patricia has authored numerous publications in the corrections, technology and biometric fields. She served on the Skills for Security Consultation Group for Biometrics and Human Identity, contributing to the development of the UK national occupational standards for the industry. Patricia is currently an active member of the APPA Technology Committee and the International Relations Committee. From 2011–2017 Patricia served on the Economic Advisory Group, providing independent advice to the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland, and she is currently a member of Matrix, the industry foresight panel informing government strategy on the commercial exploitation of R&D, science, and technology. Patricia was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s 2013 Royal New Year Honours list for services to the Northern Ireland Economy. In 2022 Patricia was awarded Outstanding Woman in Technology by Women in Tech.
Doug Dretke
Advisory Board Member
Doug Dretke is the Executive Director of the Correctional Management Institute of Texas at Sam Houston State University’s George J. Beto Criminal Justice Center, which serves the training and professional development needs of correctional professionals across the broad spectrum of corrections and facilitates international exchanges and training with correctional agencies abroad. A 26-year veteran of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Doug began his career as a Correctional Officer for the Department and served as Warden for two different facilities before becoming Director of the Department’s Correctional Institutions Division. He retired from the Department in July 2006 to become Director of the Correctional Management Institute of Texas. Earlier, Doug earned his bachelor’s degree from Sam Houston State University in Criminology and Corrections and his master’s degree in Public Administration with a Criminal Justice concentration from Texas A&M Corpus Christi. He currently serves as an Adjunct Faculty member at the College of Criminal Justice at Sam Houston State University and is active with a number of state, national, and international professional associations including the American Probation and Parole Association, the American Jail Association, the North American Association of Wardens and Superintendents, International Corrections and Prisons Association and the American Correctional Association. Doug is also a highly regarded presenter who lectures nationally and internationally on criminal justice-related issues.
Steve Pitts
Advisory Board Member
Steve Pitts began his career as a Probation Officer in London, later moving to national and international roles where he worked on issues including probation service work in partnership, prisoner resettlement, and strengthening probation’s quality and impact. He holds a master’s degree in Organisational Behaviour from the University of London. During his career, he was selected to the European Commission as a Twinning Advisor on probation development, and later established and led the England and Wales Prison and Probation Services International function. While working in this role he led multi-partner European-wide effective practice research and development projects as well as the organization’s International Justice Assistance Program. Steve was also involved in developing the World Congress on Probation concept and bringing the biannual practice, research, and idea-sharing conference to fruition. He remains an active member of the World Congress Advisory Group. A strong advocate of global international knowledge exchange and effective evidence-informed, sustainable approaches to community-based justice, Steve now works independently, as well as in concert with organizations including the United Nations, as an International Advisor on community-based justice. Steve is also an active supporter of several international organizations in the justice field and serves as an Ambassador on behalf of the Confederation of European Probation (CEP) – the European Organization for Probation.