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KCIW

KY Correctional Institution for Women

​​Mission

To provide humane program and service opportunities for female offenders that will enhance their community re-integration and economic self-sufficiency; and that will be administered in a just and equitable manner within the least restrictive environment consists with public, staff and inmate safety.

About KCIW

The Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women (KCIW) houses adult female felons for the Commonwealth from all 120 counties in Kentucky. The institution first opened in 1938 and is located on 270 acres in Shelby County near the town of Pewee Valley and has been ACA accredited since 1982. The institution is a campus style setting with multiple housing units, double and single-bunked.

The Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women is considered a multi-custody facility as differential housing and programming must meet the needs of female offenders serving one year to life, death row, maximum, medium, minimum, community custody, first offenders, persistent offenders, the disabled and special needs inmates.

Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women
3000 Ash Ave.
Pewee Valley, Kentucky 40056
(Shelby County)

Warden: Vanessa Kennedy
Secretary: Melanie Dragoo
ADA Coordinator: Julie Barnes​
Phone: (502) 241-8454
Fax: (502) 241-3885

Institutional Information

​Security Status​Multiple
​Date Opened​1938
​Population​713
​Total Acreage​270
​Total Staff​220
​Black inmates​20%
​White inmates​79%
​Annual Cost Per Inmate​$28,700
​Daily Cost Per Inmate
​$78.63
​Annual Operating Budget
​$19.6​ Million


Accredited by the American Correctional Association (ACA)