Members of the Citizen's Volunteer Program help support Miami-Dade police officers so that they can remain focused on providing efficient police service to the community. Volunteers also help to improve the overall efficiency of the Department and to reduce and solve crime. Volunteers are not utilized to replace sworn or other paid positions within the Miami-Dade Police Department, but rather to enhance the efficiency of the agency.
The program is not designed to allow volunteers to function in a law enforcement capacity or to work in dangerous situations. Volunteers must comply with the Department's observer program requirements.
Why volunteer?
- To learn more about law enforcement.
- To develop individual job skills.
- To help the community.
- To make new friends and contacts.
- To help the Department fight crime.
Who is qualified to volunteer?
- Anyone 18 years of age or older who submits to a thorough background check.
- All law-abiding citizens of Miami-Dade County who have not been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor. However, certain misdemeanors may be waived.
- Candidates who successfully meet the selection criteria of the Miami-Dade Police Department's Citizens' Volunteer Program application process.
- Individuals who can commit to a minimum of six hours per week, and a minimum of one year of service.
- Anyone who possess the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the essential job functions with or without reasonable accommodation.
Those selected as members of the Citizen's Volunteer Program will work in the districts and bureaus of the Miami-Dade Police Department located throughout the County. This may include Miami-Dade Police Department Headquarters in Doral. You may be selected to work special events. Positions are available primarily during business hours Monday through Friday. Tasks include:
- Clerical support - general office duties
- Data entry duties
- Reception desk assistance
- Special projects
- Volunteer program assistance
- Public Information Officer assistance
If you're interested in becoming a member of the Citizen’s Volunteer Program, please complete an application. Then you will email your name, phone number, and your reason for wanting to be a part of the program to the Citizen Volunteer Program Coordinator. When your email is received, your information will be entered into an email distribution list. You will then be notified within four to six weeks of an upcoming orientation session.
Answering the Call to Service
Every day, the uniformed men and women representing the Miami-Dade Police Department strive to protect our neighborhoods, reduce crime, and uphold the laws of our community. Since September 11, 2001, the Miami-Dade Police Department has worked even harder to ensure public safety and strengthen our relationship with the citizens we serve. None of this would have been possible without the help of more than 100 citizen volunteers working within our law enforcement agency to assist with important administrative and non-intervention policing activities, helping to free up more officers for their frontline responsibilities.
Nationwide, over 38,000 volunteers are working within over 700 police departments as part of Volunteers in Police Services (VIPS), a key component of President Bush's Citizen Corps initiative created following the September 11th incident to help make our communities safer, stronger, and better equipped to respond to any emergency situation. As part of his 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush asked every American to volunteer two years, or 4,000 hours over the course of their lives in service to our communities and our country. He created the USA Freedom Corps to connect millions of Americans to meaningful service opportunities such as VIPS. In our Department alone, volunteers serve valuable roles by assisting with identification and fingerprinting duties, organizing neighborhood watch programs, and helping with important administrative responsibilities.
With greater demands placed on our law enforcement agencies today, these volunteers are vital to ensure that our officers have the time to focus on their key tasks. Our public safety, in a time of heightened security and new threats depends on it. In the aftermath of September 11, police officers and firefighters are among the leading heroes of young people. If we are going to build a culture of service and citizenship as the USA Freedom Corps is helping to do across the country, our officers and the citizens that support them, must play leading roles. Fortunately, the Miami-Dade Police Department is doing just that.
