From breakthroughs in forensic science to changing cultural norms, law enforcement departments need continuous professional development and training for their officers. Across the country, leaders are seeking new strategies to help navigate an increasingly sophisticated and nuanced relationship with their surrounding communities.
“Right now, law enforcement needs to cultivate good leaders who can help bring about a change in their organizations,” said Dr. Karen Casey, Lynn University criminal justice professor. “Having leaders with advanced degrees provides law enforcement with future ‘top brass’ who have the skills they need to coordinate with counterparts across services.”
Developing new leaders
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office (BSO) is one organization looking to develop its leadership. After evaluating potential partnerships with other South Florida higher education institutions, the organization found what it needed in Lynn’s Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) program.
“My background is in training and professional development, but when I was promoted to colonel, I realized I lacked the organizational skills to really excel. I had never balanced a department budget or dealt with human resource issues,” said BSO Department of Preparedness & Response Colonel Steve Robson ’22. “I quickly realized if I felt this way, there must be others who would jump at the chance to refine their leadership skills.”
Robson set out to find other officers within the organization with an interest in earning a graduate degree. After distributing a survey to management-level officers, he discovered the M.P.A. was more popular than an advanced degree in criminal justice.
“What I found was that my colleagues felt they understood the law enforcement aspect of their jobs,” said Robson. “However, they wanted to improve their ability to bridge interdepartmental gaps, improve their relationships with community partners and serve as a polished, more knowledgeable representative of the Broward Sheriff’s Office.”
Together with Lynn’s Director of Graduate and Online Admission Steve Pruitt, Robson created a custom program focused on collaboration, flexibility and innovation.
“When Steve came to me with this idea of a cohort model, my first thought was, ‘We can do this. We can do anything at Lynn,’” said Pruitt. “It’s a very unique model we built, complete with educational and financial roadmaps. We had the flexibility within our design to create something that worked for busy, active law enforcement officials.”
Back to school
Once a week, the officers met in a conference room at BSO headquarters and attended classes via Zoom. The cohort of 10—which included colonels, captains, lieutenants and deputies—studied and debated topics such as regulatory policy, government ethics, public budgeting and managing human resources. The hybrid approach allowed the officers to participate even while away on business or on assignment.
As the program progressed, the officers noticed an immediate improvement in their writing and ability to express opinions.
“It was thrilling to see my colleagues have those ‘A-ha!’ moments—to see their confidence grow when they began to understand the ‘why’ behind organizational decisions,” shared Robson.
Not only did Robson support the creation of a custom M.P.A. program, but he also enrolled and earned his degree alongside his colleagues. His dual role as a student and program designer gave him rare insight on how to best deliver graduate programs for his fellow and future officers.
“I knew that if I wanted to be successful in serving up great training programs, I had to walk the walk. I wanted to be able to say, ‘I did it, so can you,’” he said.
Now proud graduates, the inaugural group of officers have inspired others to follow their example. The department already has received interest for a second cohort with 12 officers prepared to enroll.
Next steps
As BSO eagerly awaits the grand opening of its new training facility, Robson plans to move M.P.A. classes into the new building so the program can provide officers with complementary abilities, including human intelligence and social skills. “This way, we can show our officers that community engagement and finesse are just as important as enforcing the law,” remarked Robson.
“The success of our BSO cohort validates that Lynn is where you want to be,” said Pruitt. “We have the best faculty, we’re user-friendly and we take care of our partners. We can now show other organizations—fire rescue and fish and wildlife, for example—that the model works, and our courses offer valuable skills that can take their departments into the future of public service.”
