Colette S. Peters '93 Appointed to Lead the Oregon Youth Authority

07/09/2009

St. Benedict alum to lead Oregon state agency

In a July 6, 2009 news release, Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski announced the appointment of Colette
S. Peters, class of 1993, to lead the Oregon Youth Authority.

The Oregon Youth Authority is the state juvenile corrections agency responsible for incarcerating youth
who cannot safely live in the community, and providing supervision and treatment opportunities to youth
offenders in all 36 Oregon counties.

In making the announcement, Kulongoski said, “Colette has experience in
many facets of public safety, but her enduring passion is working with youth,
where she started her career. Furthermore, she has a solid foundation in
organizational leadership, an exceptional understanding of government
ethics, and has built enduring partnerships in the criminal justice community.”

Peters was assistant director and inspector general of the Oregon Department
of Corrections between 2005 and late 2008, when she moved to the Midwest.
Before that she was the Department of Corrections Public Affairs
administrator, a research and policy associate with the Colorado Legislature,
a victim’s advocate and crisis mediator with the Denver Police Department,
and a juvenile counselor in a boy’s shelter in Minneapolis and in a residential
treatment center in Johnston, Iowa.

Peters holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the College of Saint
Benedict and a master’s degree in criminal justice from the Graduate School of Public Affairs at the
University of Colorado.

The Oregon Youth Authority achieves its public safety goals by holding youth accountable and providing
reformation opportunities to youth offenders in safe environments. It provides a continuum of services
including probation, residential placement, foster care, incarceration and parole to protect the public,
rehabilitate youth and reduce juvenile crime. Services emphasize decisive intervention in delinquent
behavior, certain sanctions for crimes committed by youth, restitution to victims, and effective and
innovative rehabilitation programs for youth offenders.

Peters will provide leadership for approximately 1,100 employees who supervise more than 2,000 youth
in the community on probation or parole or in ten youth correctional facilities. The agency’s two-year
budget is $266 million. Peters’ appointment is effective July 20, 2009 pending state senate confirmation
in the fall.

Institutional Advancement
College of Saint Benedict
St. Joseph, MN 56374
(320) 363-5682
(800) 648-3468