For 26 1/2 years, Ted Sakai worked in a variety of executive positions in the Hawaii's corrections system. From 1998 to 2002, he served as a member of the Governor's cabinet as the Director of Public Safety. In that position, he provided leadership to the all state corrections and law enforcement entities. Among other assignments, he also served as Administrator of corrections programs and as the Warden of the Waiawa Correctional Facility, where he tightened security (no escapes for over two years) and expanded treatment programs for inmates.
Ted's professional accomplishments include the implementation of substance abuse and sex offender treatment programs for inmates; negotiation of contracts to house Hawaii prisoners in other states; development of accountability systems for managers; development of strategic plans for the department; coordination of a multiagency approach for substance abuse treatment; implementing programs to minimize suicides by inmates; and developing policies and programs to reduce abuse of inmates by correctional staff.
As Warden at Waiawa, Ted worked with community agencies to implement innovative programs to help inmates develop parenting skills and bond with their children. He also helped to launch a program using restorative justice techniques to help inmates reunite with their families. He was recognized for his work in 2004 by the Hawaii state Legislature when he was named Advocate of the Year for Children and Youth.
Ted recently "retired" from the system and serves as certified coach and as a consultant in leadership development. He has since served the community as a member of the Interagency Council on Intermediate Sanctions, the Penal Code Review Committee, the co-chair of the Advisory Committee on Children of
Incarcerated Parents, and as a member of the Advisory Committee on Law and Justice for Hawaii Pacific University. He currently is a member of the Boards of Directors of the Hawaiian Legacy Foundation, the KEY Project, the Hawaii Friends for Civic and Law Related Education, Read to Me International, and the Read It Loud, America! Foundation. He actively participates in the American Correctional Association and the Association of State Correctional Administrators.