Department Holds First-Ever Civilian Promotions Ceremony

For the first time in its storied history, the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office held a ceremony to honor civilian employees for their promotions. On Friday, August 9, 2024, 25 civilians were celebrated for their achievements in a ceremony that drew enthusiastic applause and the proud presence of family, friends, and colleagues.

The promotions were officially recognized in the department’s second-floor conference room at the Fred Taylor Headquarters Building in Doral. The event had the feel of a graduation ceremony as each honoree made their way to the stage to receive a certificate and pose for photographs with Deputy Director Christopher J. Carothers. The room reverberated with cheers as loved ones and coworkers acknowledged the hard-earned accomplishments of the promoted civilians.

In his remarks, Deputy Director Carothers acknowledged that this recognition was long overdue, signaling a new era of appreciation for the vital roles civilians play within the department.

“As mentioned earlier, traditionally the department has not held this type of recognition for civilian staff members and it was not because we didn’t like you or appreciate you or need you because all those things would be untrue,” Deputy Director Carothers said. He said that with regard to the sworn side of the department, there is a formalized time frame for eligibility for promotion and an established routine to the process. The civilian equivalent ceremony “kinda’ fell to the wayside,” he said, but the department will use the first ceremony as a springboard to continue to acknowledge civilian promotions. He then thanked Chief Stephanie L. Stoiloff, the department’s Chief Scientific Officer who oversees the Forensic Services Division, for bringing forth the idea to have a civilian promotion ceremony.

In a speech, Chief Stoiloff told the civilian staffers, “Your work is the backbone of everything we do in this department, I know that I don’t need to tell you that.”

Chief Stoiloff named all of the areas within the department that were represented by the civilians recently promoted. Within the Investigative Services Division, the Crime Laboratory and Homicide, Special Victims, Homeland Security, Organized Crimes, and Crime Scene & Evidence Bureaus were represented. Within the Fiscal & Departmental Services, the Information Technology Services Division, Fiscal Administration, and the Central Records, Communications, and Personnel Management Bureaus were represented. Within the Compliance and Standards Division, the Police Legal, Professional Compliance, and Mental Health & Wellness Bureaus were represented. And within Police Services, the South District and the Community Affairs Bureau were represented.

“As you’ve heard from that long list, our civilian staffers are inextricably linked to every part of this amazing agency,” Chief Stoiloff said.

The ceremony was the first of three to celebrate civilians promoted since January 2023. The second ceremony was held on Tuesday, August 13, 2024, and included 33 civilians. There will be at least two more ceremonies in 2024.

The department’s Human Resources Manager, Dena Kelly, explained that there are two avenues to promotion within the non-sworn or professional side of the department. “Sometimes it might be a position from a Criminalist 1 to a Criminalist 2, and in that case it’s a little bit different because those are automatic promotions. Someone who is hired as a Criminalist 1, they go through a year, maybe a year and a half of probation and training, and once they pass their phases as a Criminalist 1, they’re reclassified to a Criminalist 2, so some of the promotions are in classifications. But most promotions in the true sense of the word is when a job is advertised, people apply, they’re interviewed, and the best candidate is selected.”

Among those recently promoted and acknowledged during the ceremony was MDSO Intelligence Analyst Simone N. Robinson, who has been with the department for 14 years, having first served as a Police Dispatcher. She currently works in the Special Victims Bureau. Echoing Chief Stoiloff’s comments, she said, “We are like the backbone of the department, helping to get subjects off the streets.”

She thanked Chief Eric L. Garcia, her former supervisor at the Communications Bureau, for helping her out in her career path within the department. “He believed in me, and he always spoke positively of my future, so I am here today because he believed in me,” she said, holding back tears.

After the ceremony ended and as families left the conference room, Chief Stoiloff said, “Just take a look at all those smiles; it was worth every single minute making it happen.”