Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson has named Wendy Kelley as the new director of the Arkansas Department of Correction.
Kelley is currently the chief deputy prosecutor at ADC, the first woman to hold the role. She’s been in the position since January 2014. Prior to that, she was deputy director of the Health & Correctional Programs from 2006-13.
Kelley will replace interim director Larry Norris, who was appointed to the position in October.
In her time in the Arkansas Attorney General’s office, the ADC was one of her major litigation clients.
“[Kelley’s] leadership capabilities, in addition to the experience and knowledge she possesses having worked at ADC — not to mention the years she’s spent working alongside the department — make her the ideal choice for this time of change and challenge within the Department of Correction, and I know she will lead the department with skill and integrity,” Hutchinson said in a statement.
Kelley was elected to the American Correctional Association Commission on Accreditation this year, and has served as co-chair of the Coalition of Correctional Health Authorities.
“I am excited and honored to work with the Governor-elect in his administration,” she said in a statement. “The ADC is full of dedicated professionals who work everyday to carry out the agency’s mission of public safety.”
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