Biography

Dr. Eric S. Plummer came to UND in October 2012 from Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, Ark., where he served as system chief of police.  Dr. Plummer assumed the role of chief of police for Southern Arkansas University (SAU) in April 2007.  In 2010, Dr. Plummer created the first Southern Arkansas University System police department in the state of Arkansas, and was named System Police Chief by the SAU’s System President gaining public safety responsibility over three independent campus locations.  He was responsible for formulating policy and procedures; managing budgets, resources and personnel for three campus police departments; and developing and implementing emergency operations procedures for the system.  Dr. Plummer holds law enforcement certifications in North Dakota, Florida, and all five state law enforcement officer certifications in Arkansas, as well as all three chief of police certifications earning the designation of senior chief of police within the state of Arkansas.

Dr. Plummer served as a combat signaler in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1993 to 1999, and as an intelligence analyst from 2005 to 2006. He was also employed with the Florida Highway Patrol in numerous roles including state trooper, homicide detective, criminal and internal affairs investigator, and supervisor.

He currently serves as a national critical incident management instructor for the Homeland Security Consortium - National Emergency Response and Rescue Training Center (NERRTC) located through TEEX and has developed courses for DHS and FEMA in the area of critical incident response, as well as developed resource material for Complex Coordinated Terrorist Attack programs.  Dr. Plummer also conducts threat, risk, and vulnerability assessments on various physical and critical infrastructure sites.

Dr. Plummer holds a Ph.D. in Public Safety with a concentration in Emergency Management and a master’s degree in management, as well as a bachelor’s degree in sociology.  He is also a graduate of Harvard University’s Executive Education Course in Crisis Leadership and the Southern Police Institute’s 50th Command Officer Development Course through University of Louisville. 

As the associate vice president for public safety/chief of police, Dr. Plummer works in partnership with students, faculty, staff and the broader Grand Forks community, as well as state and federal agencies, to maintain a secure and accessible campus.  He builds a sense of community involvement and interest throughout campus, with an emphasis on positive and proactive interactions with all constituencies served.  Reporting directly to the AVP for public safety are the offices of emergency management, safety, the operations center, risk management and insurance, and the University of North Dakota Police Department (UPD).