TJ Walker Williams, Deputy Chief
Florida Southwestern State College
Deputy Chief TJ Williams began her professional law enforcement career in 1980 at the City of Miami Police Department. Although she was initially hired as a Community Service Aide, she was soon sponsored to attend the academy. Twenty-year-old Officer Walker at the time, graduated but being too young to carry a gun, she was assigned to desk duty until her 21st birthday.
Deputy Chief Williams’s 16-year career at the City of Miami included numerous special assignments including road patrol, School Resource Officer, the first black female Mounted Patrol Officer, Marine Patrol, Undercover Narcotics, Detective Bureau, and finally the only black female Aviation Flight Observer.
TJ was hired by the Cape Coral Police Department in 1997 and continued demonstrating her commitment, professionalism, and leadership skills. She was assigned to the patrol division, taught the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) curriculum at multiple elementary schools, and partnered with local businesses such as Target, Publix, and others to chair a community National Night Out event. After being promoted to sergeant, TJ supervised numerous officers in Cape Coral’s Patrol Division. In 2011, Sergeant Williams retired with honors from the Cape Coral Police Department. She proudly served and was the only black, female supervisor in that department.
Realizing that her need to serve and protect was still strong, TJ Williams joined the Florida Southwestern State College Public Safety Department in 2013 as a part-time Public Safety Technician. She quickly moved up the ranks from technician to her current position. Within a few short years, Deputy Chief Williams’s management skills were evident, as she ascended through the ranks. The combination of decades of practical experience, a master’s degree in criminal justice, and numerous executive training courses have prepared Thijuana Williams to serve the community with distinction. During her time at Florida Southwestern State College Campus Police Department, she has been tasked with overseeing field and administrative operations by evaluating the sustainability of resource allocation, partnering with local jurisdictions assessing evidence and property retention, managing expenditures and procurements, oversaw compliance of all policies/state laws, liaison for FDLE/DMSMV/ARMS, Terminal Agency Coordinator, completed & submitted FDLE/UCR reports, oversaw personnel issues, oversaw agency training, and a myriad of challenges associated with an executive position.
Upon the appointment of a new Chief of Police in September of 2019, TJ Williams was instrumental in a successful transition for the Chief of Police into the Florida Southwestern State College Public Safety Department. Based on a collective vision, objectives and goals, the Public Safety Department was reimagined and transformed into the Florida Southwestern State College Campus Police Department while changing agency branding and implementing an infrastructure to support a modern policing agency.
Deputy Chief Williams is grateful and humbled by the opportunity to serve the Florida Southwestern State College community as their Deputy Chief of Police. Her entire career was built on professionalism and integrity and her promise is to continue to lead with those values.
She is married to her soulmate and has one daughter, a son, a stepson, a stepdaughter, several grandchildren, and her passion outside of work is family and bowling.
As long as I am capable, I will serve this community with the core values I have embraced for the past forty years as a Florida State Certified Law Enforcement Officer.
Thank you for this opportunity.
