Alabama parole director Cam Ward to receive national addiction policy award at U.S. Capitol

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November 28, 2025

(Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles/Facebook)

Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles Director Cam Ward will receive the 2025 Pillar of Excellence Award from the Addiction Policy Forum during a ceremony on Tuesday at the U.S. Capitol, according to the agency.

The Bureau said Ward will be recognized alongside other national leaders, including U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and U.S. Rep. Carol Miller (R-WV), as part of the Addiction Policy Forum’s annual awards reception.

The award is intended to honor leaders whose work improves addiction prevention, treatment, recovery, and criminal-justice responses for people with substance use disorders, the bureau said.

“We’re proud to represent Alabama, Governor Kay Ivey and our excellent officers and staff by bringing this award back to the Bureau,” Director Ward said.

“Alabama’s leaders have been staunch supporters of our work while our team remains dedicated to these programs that lead to reduced crime, better outcomes and safer communities across the state.”

The Bureau pointed to its network of Day Reporting Centers and the Perry County PREP Center as key parts of its reentry and rehabilitation programming. The agency says the PREP Center, which opened in 2022, has maintained a zero percent recidivism rate and has helped more than 400 participants since it launched.

The Bureau also said the PREP model is expected to be replicated in other locations across the state.

Those efforts are tied to Alabama’s participation in Reentry 2030, a national initiative led by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center that focuses on improving outcomes for people returning to their communities after incarceration.

Alabama’s stated goal under the initiative is to cut the state’s recidivism rate in half by 2030.

Before joining the Ivey administration, Ward served in the Alabama Legislature, including time in the Alabama Senate and as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, where the Bureau said he backed evidence-based criminal justice policy reforms, including work connected to the Justice Reinvestment Initiative.