John Gorczyk, Chair
John F. Gorczyk is a 1969 graduate of the Johns Hopkins University. He moved to Vermont in 1971 for the outdoor quality of life that it provides and began his career as a teacher at the Wilmington High School. His criminal justice career began in 1973 and spans over three decades. He started with Vermont corrections as a correctional officer and has held a variety of positions including Probation Officer, Director of Program Services, and Deputy Commissioner. In November of 1991 he was appointed Commissioner of Corrections, a post he held until January of 2003. Since leaving the position of Commissioner John has continued in his employment with the Vt. Corrections as a grant writer and manager.
He was a participant in the Executive Sessions on Sentencing and Corrections, commissioned by the National Institute of Justice and the Corrections Program Office of the Office of Justice Programs; former President of the New England Council on Crime and Delinquency; a Toll Fellow; President of the Northeast Association of Correctional Administrators; past chair of the ACA Committee on Restorative Justice; co-author of “What the Public Wants from Corrections” and “Restructuring Corrections: Using Market Research in Vermont”. In 1998 the Department received the Ford Foundation, Kennedy School of Government award for Innovations in Government. In 2006 John received the Louie Wainwright Award from the Association of State Correctional Administrators for his “pioneering” work in evidence-based practice, intermediate sanctions and restorative justice.
More importantly, in his leisure time John spends as much time as possible out doors. He is an avid bird listener and watcher and can be found on most summer weekends on one body of water or another canoeing with his wife Sue.
