Undersheriff Nichole Anderson.
By: Sharon Aron Baron
Sheriff Gregory Tony has just announced the appointment of the first African American female to the position of undersheriff.
On Tuesday, Sheriff Tony announced his selection of Colonel Nichole Anderson to be the second in command at the agency following the resignation of Colonel Sean Zukowsky.
“Colonel Zukowsky’s absence will be felt, but I respect and support his decision to put his family first,” Sheriff Tony said. “As I began soliciting interest in the position, I was pleasantly surprised by the overwhelming support from the rank and file who felt Colonel Anderson was the perfect candidate for the appointment. To me, their actions are a testament to her leadership and the respect she has garnered through her career at BSO.”
An undersheriff is also called a deputy sheriff and is a senior-level law enforcement professional. This individual performs a variety of tasks in an effort to support the sheriff of a county in the prevention of crimes and bringing perpetrators to justice.
Colonel Anderson first made history at BSO when she became the first African American female captain to head a district command with her appointment as Chief of the South Broward district in 2011. In Jan. 2017, she became the first African American female promoted to the rank of major, and, in January of this year, she became the first female promoted to the rank of colonel.
In her 23 years at BSO, Colonel Anderson has risen through the ranks. She joined the agency in September 1996 as a road patrol deputy after serving two years as a state trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol. She has a wide range of experience, working as a field training deputy, supervising the agency Recruitment Division and holding the positions of Executive Officer to the Sheriff and major in the Community Services Department.
Colonel Anderson received her bachelor’s degree in Legal Studies from Nova Southeastern University and earned a master’s degree in Organizational Management from the University of Phoenix. She attended the 114th session of the Southern Police Institute Administrative Officers Course at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky, and, in 2018, graduated from the 274th session of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
Certain Broward cities like Coconut Creek, Hallandale Beach, Pembroke Pines, Sunrise, Plantation, Davie, Margate, Miramar, Lauderhill, Lighthouse Point, and Coral Springs maintain their own police departments, however, BSO does provide communications and dispatch services to the following cities: Central Broward, Cooper City, Dania Beach, Deerfield Beach, Ft Lauderdale-Hollywood Int’l Airport, Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, Lauderdale Lakes, North Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Parkland, Pembroke Park, West Park, Pompano Beach, Port Everglades, Tamarac, Weston and unincorporated West Broward.