Search all years and Public Service Award winners using this form.
For biographies and photos of recent winners, download the brochures linked below.
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Administration for Children's Services.
"John Gallagher possesses a level of passion and dedication that is unmatched. For him, providing humanistic care and ensuring security in our facilities are not mutually exclusive, but, in fact, are mutually beneficial."
In 1989, John Gallagher was assigned to Rikers Island as a rookie Correction Officer. Thirty years later, he is an undisputed leader and fierce advocate for transforming the Department's approach to treating inmates with mental illnesses. Because of his initiatives, seven jails on Rikers Island now have mental health units which house inmates with mental illnesses, provide supports, and are an alternative to solitary confinement. Because of him, over 600 Officers have received Crisis Intervention Training on how to de-escalate situations involving inmates with mental health issues. "I would ask you to find a more compassionate and caring man than Dep. Gallagher. But then I would be asking you to do the impossible," says Correction Officer Sandra Reid. Adds Senior Deputy Commissioner Timothy Farrell, "John Gallagher possesses a level of passion and dedication that is unmatched. For him, providing humanistic care and ensuring security in our facilities are not mutually exclusive, but, in fact, are mutually beneficial."
