MERLAK

ELKTON — After 30 years of dedicated government service, Steven Merlak, warden of Elkton’s Federal Correctional Institution, will retire on Aug. 31. Merlak’s career began in 1991 at the Phoenix Community Corrections Office. He then transferred to FCI Marianna, Fla., in March 1992 as a social science research analyst. He then held positions of increasing responsibility including case manager in September 1992 at the Long Beach Community Corrections Office and at FCI Pekin, Ill., in 1994. In 1996, he was promoted to case management coordinator at the Taft Correctional Institution, Calif., and then to unit manager at FCI Victorville, Calif., in 1999 and USP Victorville, Calif., in 2005.

Merlak was promoted to executive assistant/camp administrator at FCI Loretto, Pa., in 2009 and then to associate warden at FCI Phoenix, Ariz., in 2012. He transferred to FCI Otisville, N.Y., as associate warden in 2014, prior to assuming the position of warden at FCI Elkton, Ohio, in January 2016.

Since his arrival, Merlak has established strong ties to the local community. He is a member of the local American Legion Post 290, Columbiana Youth Baseball Association and the Cleveland Federal Executive Board. He has also initiated several community service projects between FCI Elkton and the local communities.

Merlak will remain in the area with his wife, Connie, and their two sons, ages 11 and 16, so they can finish school in the area.