Jack Kavanagh, former deputy director of the Howard County Department of Corrections, has been named director of the department, County Executive Ken Ulman announced yesterday.
Kavanagh, who has served as acting director since December, will replace Melanie C. Pereira, who retired after serving as director for 10 years.
As head of the department, Kavanagh will be warden of the Howard County Detention Center. He has worked in corrections for almost 30 years, 24 of which were with the Maryland Division of Correction.
Before Howard County, where he was deputy director for five years overseeing security operations, staff training, emergency preparedness and compliance with correctional standards, Kavanagh worked as deputy commissioner for Division of Correction headquarters in Baltimore.
He is certified with the U.S. Department of Justice National Institute of Corrections Executives and holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of Baltimore.