Mission Statement

The mission of the Norfolk County Sheriff’s Office is to serve the public safety needs of the residents of Norfolk County and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, through a commitment to fundamentally change the culture of its correctional facility, by making reentry and reintegration the priority of its operations. The NCSO and its nearly 300 members seek to reimagine what is possible as a public safety agency, based on the four pillars of Prevention, Intervention, Education, & Hope.

We believe that public safety involves preventing crime as well as addressing the conditions that threaten the health, well-being, and safety of all Norfolk County residents. We pursue this goal in two ways: by operating a safe, secure, and humane correctional facility that focuses on offender rehabilitation and post-release success; and by investing in Norfolk County communities with programming focused on education, leadership, youth development, civics and citizenship, crime prevention, vocational support, substance use prevention, elder support, and working with law enforcement. This work is made possible through both a highly-trained and dedicated workforce and an investment in partnerships and collaborative agreements with public and private stakeholders.

This mission is realized in four priority areas:

Professionalism & Accountability
This priority area ensures that the NCSO remains a workplace that holds its employees to the highest professional standards and maintains the trust of the public.

• Maintaining a safe and secure direct supervision correctional facility that conforms to all national, state, and local standards, laws, and judicial decisions.
• Serving as a positive representative of the work and reputation of the Norfolk County Sheriff’s Office both on-duty and off-duty and holding all staff accountable to these standards.
• Dedicating ourselves to maintain the highest level of professionalism, through support, motivation, professional development, and training program opportunities.
• Conducting all work and decision making in a manner that is transparent, understands the needs of other divisions, and is communicated effectively both internally and externally.
• Completing all NCSO work in a manner that is timely, thorough, and of the highest quality.

Character
This priority area recognizes that each employee of the NCSO is a representative of the department as a whole and are models of ethical behavior to their colleagues and the public.

• Ensuring the fair and equitable treatment of offenders by respecting the rights and dignity of all persons.
• Creating a just and fair environment that encourages positive behavior from those in our care and custody and modeling those behaviors in our professional interactions.
• Respecting the dignity and value of each person within the NCSO and the communities we serve.
• Serving with honesty, integrity, and dedication.

Opportunity
This priority area emphasizes creating an environment in which employees and those we serve are supported in pursuing opportunities for growth, development, and advancement.

• Encouraging employees to produce work of the highest-caliber by providing opportunities for professional development and training.
• Supporting staff who seek out external opportunities for professional development.
• Promoting professional opportunities at the NCSO, including promotions, hiring, professional development, and training.
• Providing education, treatment opportunities, job skill programs, civics training, and social responsibility for offenders to prepare them for a successful return to society.

Community
This priority area promotes community in two ways: 1) by establishing and promoting a healthy workplace; and 2) by emphasizing the relationship between the NCSO and the communities we serve in Norfolk County.

• Building a highly-trained and professional team of corrections professionals whose first priority is the safety and security of offenders and the communities of Norfolk County.
• Fostering a climate of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in both the workplace and in our programming.
• Promoting public safety through community programming, volunteer opportunities, community service programs, and robust support systems that both aim to prevent criminal activity and confront the conditions that threaten the safety and security of all Norfolk County residents.
• Seeking out, whenever possible, alternatives to incarceration that strengthen communities, rehabilitate offenders, and ensure the efficiency of services provided by the Sheriff’s Office.