Prisons in Iowa
There are nine prisons in the state of Iowa. The information below about individual institutions was obtained from the Iowa Department of Corrections website, a useful resource for those interested in the state's carceral system.
Anamosa State Penitentiary
(Anamosa, IA)
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Medium-maximum security
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1,110 inmates ±
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355 staff members
Anamosa State Penitentiary (ASP) was established in 1872 and is a maximum/medium security institution that currently houses over 1,150 inmates. Programs are offered providing opportunities to acquire academic and vocational skills. Through a contract with Kirkwood Community College, inmates may pursue educational opportunities including adult literacy, earning a GED, or taking classes leading to an Associate of Arts degree. Iowa Prison Industries offers job skills training in its License Plates, Custom Woodworking, Braille Transcription, Graphic Arts, Metal Furniture, Sign, Cleaning Products, Warehouse, and Farming operations. Inmates with substance abuse problems may participate in a substance abuse program licensed by the Department of Public Health, and the counseling staff conducts other specialized treatment groups. The Luster Heights Work Camp is a satellite facility under the control of ASP. The facility houses 85 inmates and is located in the Yellow River State Forest in northeast Iowa. The camp also offers a substance abuse program licensed by the Iowa Department of Public Health. Inmates assigned to this facility work for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources in the forest and for several communities in the area. In addition, they work on community service projects in the camp.
Clarinda Correctional Facility
(Clarinda, IA)
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Medium security
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973 inmates ±
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287 staff members
Clarinda Correctional Facility was established in 1980 as an adult male medium-security prison to serve primarily inmates who are chemically dependent, intellectually disabled, mentally ill, or special needs. The facility is located on the grounds of the Mental Health Institute. Numerous programs and services are offered at the Clarinda facility. The Special Needs/Intensive Supervision Unit provides individual treatment for inmates who are intellectually disabled, mentally ill, or special needs. . Substance abuse programming, licensed by the Iowa Department of Public Health, is provided through the CHOICES program. CHOICES offers many group activities that uses principles of Hazelden plan consisting of pre-treatment, primary treatment and aftercare. Other programs and services offered are: educational instruction includes GED, high school diploma, life skills, and computer courses, special education for eligible individuals, recreation, re-entry, and a relapse program. A private-industry work program through Iowa Prison Industries provides employment opportunities for eligible inmates. This program makes cargo trailers and facilities are housed on facility grounds. The CCF Lodge offers a minimum live-out work program for eligible inmates. Inmates work in various on-campus and off-campus jobs. Some programming is also available to inmates residing at CCF Lodge.
Ft. Dodge Correctional Facility
(Ft. Dodge, IA)
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Medium security
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1,183 inmates ±
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366 staff members
Fort Dodge Correctional Facility (FDCF) is a medium-security prison originally designed to house 762 adult male inmates in a double occupancy celled environment. The facility opened in April 1998 and underwent expansion in late 1999. It is located on 60 acres of land in southern Fort Dodge. Current capacity is 1162.
In addition to housing units, the facility consists of administration and treatment buildings, a power plant, and a warehouse. Primary perimeter security is provided by a double fence system with electronic detection. FDCF offers a variety of programming and the New Frontiers Substance Abuse Program, which is licensed by the State of Iowa. FDCF’s Young Offender Program, RIVERS (Redirecting Individual Values, Energy, Relationships, and Skills), is a 5-month voluntary intensive program. In addition to programming, inmates are provided work opportunities including private sector jobs inside the fence to assist in developing the skills needed to become a productive and successful citizen.
Iowa Correctional Institution for Women
(Mitchellville, IA)
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Minimum-medium security
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888 inmates ±
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238 staff members
The Iowa Correctional Institution for Women is a minimum-medium security prison opened in 1982. ICIW houses inmates in dorm-like living units and celled housing. ICIW provides educational and vocational services to inmates, including Adult Basic Education, special education for eligible individuals, and high school equivalency programs. Internal work assignments and vocational training courses provide vocational training opportunities. ICIW’s partnership with IWD (Iowa Workforce Development) assists the women with assessments and job skills. Iowa Prison Industries also provides on-site vocational training. The institution emphasizes responsibility and accountability in preparing women inmates for successful re-entry to the community. Programs offered focus on interpersonal relationships, domestic violence, career assessment and exploration, self-esteem, parenting, independent living, decision-making skills, victim impact, thinking patterns, and health education. Curricula are evidence-based and gender-responsive. A substance abuse prevention, assessment, and referral program is licensed by the Iowa Department of Public Health. The facility also houses an in-patient substance abuse treatment program. ICIW has constructed and transferred inmates to a new, more modern facility (pictured).
Iowa Medical and Classification Center
(Coralville, IA)
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Medium security (co-ed facility)
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918 inmates ±
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565 staff members
The Iowa Medical and Classification Center (IMCC), often called Oakdale Prison, was opened in 1969 and currently houses an average daily population of approximately 950 inmates. IMCC serves as the reception and classification center for all those entering the adult institutional corrections system, which is estimated to be 400-500 new commitments every month that are then processed on to other facilities. However, IMCC is a multi-faceted facility that employs a diversified professional workforce providing comprehensive services to both inmates and patients. A medium-security general population unit is in operation at IMCC and the Center also runs the only licensed forensic psychiatric hospital in the state, providing inpatient psychiatric and evaluation services to non-adjudicated patients. An additional unit consisting of 178 medical and psychiatric beds was added in 2007 to meet the increasing mental health and medical needs of the correctional population. The professional health care staff at IMCC include psychiatrists, medical physicians, psychologists, nurses, social workers, laboratory, radiology, respiratory, dental, optometry, physician's assistants, and nurse practitioners as well as others. Educational opportunities available to IMCC inmates/patients include instruction towards completion of their GED. Adult Basic Education, English as a Second Language, vocational, post secondary, and special education classes are provided for those meeting eligibility requirements.
Iowa State Penitentiary
(Ft. Madison, IA)
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Maximum security
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934 inmates ±
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510 staff members
Iowa State Penitentiary was established in 1839, the year after Iowa became a territory and seven years before it became a state. The Penitentiary was patterned after the Auburn, New York Penitentiary - a prison within a prison, a cell for each convict. The Penitentiary underwent extensive renovation of its cell houses when “unitization” was introduced in 1982. Unitization divided large cell houses into smaller, self-contained living units that are more easily managed. The Penitentiary is the state’s only maximum-security institution, housing repeat and violent male offenders. The Penitentiary complex includes ISP itself with a court-ordered capacity of 550. In addition, the complex includes the John Bennett Correctional Center, a medium-security dormitory adjacent to the Penitentiary currently housing 169 inmates; two minimum-security farms located within a few miles of Fort Madison with a combined population of 170; and a ten-bed multiple care unit. A Special Needs Unit for inmates with severe mental health/clinical care needs opened in August 2002, with 40 inmates and will increase in stages to a population of 120 inmates.
Inmates at the Penitentiary are offered Adult Basic Education and GED classes, special education for eligible individuals, as well as vocational training in upholstering, commercial cooking, auto mechanics, machining, and printing, as well as providing labor for a large crop farm and a cattle and swine operation. Work opportunities with hourly wages are available in Iowa Prison Industries shops at the Penitentiary. A six-month substance abuse program is offered to inmates with drug or alcohol problems, and Alcoholics Anonymous groups operate at the Penitentiary and the John Bennett Center. ISP has constructed a new facility in Ft. Madison (see photo) and is in the process of transferring inmates there.
Mt. Pleasant Correctional Facility
(Mt. Pleasant, IA)
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Medium security (co-ed facility)
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982 inmates ±
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340 staff members
Mt. Pleasant Correctional Facility (MPCF) is a medium-security institution opened in 1999, currently housing approximately 875 male inmates. It is designed programmatically for the treatment of male inmates with treatable character disorders and substance abuse problems. The programs focus specifically on sex offenders and substance abusers with a substance abuse program licensed by the Iowa Department of Public Health, and are designed for preparing the inmates for transition back to the community. In addition, MPCF inmates are offered educational and vocational programs, as well as social skills classes, to prepare them for their eventual return to the community setting. The facility is ACA accredited.
A separate unit for approximately 100 female inmates with special programming needs opened in 1999. Fifty-one staff work in the women’s unit.
North Central Correctional Facility
(Rockwell City, IA)
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Minimum security
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494 inmates ±
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107 staff members
The North Central Correctional Facility houses medium- and minimum-custody inmates who have been classified as low-risk inmates, including misdemeanants and felons, who comprise approximately 80% of the population. The institution emphasizes individual accountability and responsibility. In assisting the inmates in this endeavor and in preparing for successful return to the community, the institution offers a wide variety of programs. The education programs are grant-funded and contracted through the local area community college, and include GED, special education for eligible individuals, and the Learning Resource Center, which is a self-study, instructor-assisted curriculum in over 120 academic, pre-vocational and social skills areas. Self-help organizations consist of Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, and Jaycees.
Work opportunities for inmates are varied, and attempts are made to assign inmates to jobs that utilize their skills. Inmates are assigned in general janitorial work, maintenance of the grounds, care of the extensive yard area and gardens which produce in excess of 30,000 pounds of vegetables annually, assisting the instructors in the educational programs, acting as cooks and kitchen helpers in the food service operation, and employment in the maintenance department, as well as in outside work assignments.
Newton Correctional Facility
(Newton, IA)
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Medium security
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1,136 inmates ±
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312 staff members
Newton Correctional Facility is located five miles south of Newton on a 1,476-acre tract of land and includes a minimum-security facility as well as a medium-security facility. The Correctional Release Center currently houses inmates in a variety of low-secure living areas and is charged with preparing inmates of Iowa’s correctional institutions for parole or discharge. Correctional Release Center programs emphasize the need for individuals to take responsibility for their own actions and fall into three primary categories: release preparation, challenging criminal thinking, and substance abuse treatment. The substance abuse treatment program, licensed by the Iowa Department of Public Health, includes a substance abuse relapse treatment program for inmates who are preparing for release.
Adult Basic Education, GED classes, and special education are provided for eligible individuals. Inmate work may include on-grounds work assignments or, if approved, participation in community service work programs at state agencies or private sector employment. Inmates involved in community service work programs are transported to work sites each day and work under the supervision of non-correctional state employees.