Bollinger is a 1993 graduate of the LEA, and holds a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice and law enforcement and a Master of Science in criminal justice administration both from Southeast. He most recently served as the LEA’s training coordinator since 2011. Prior to coming to Southeast’s LEA, Bollinger worked for several local police and sheriff’s departments, including serving as a communications officer and patrolman for the Chaffee Police Department and as a corrections officer and administrative segregation sergeant for the Missouri Department of Corrections.
Bollinger began his duties on July 1 and replaced Dr. Carl Kinnison who has stepped down as director, a position he held since August 2012, and will remain an instructor for the University’s Department of Criminal Justice, Social Work and Sociology.
“I’m honored that Bobby has indicated his commitment to serve as the Director for the LEA at Southeast Missouri State University,” said Dr. Melissa Odegard-Koester, interim dean for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. “He brings a critical lens to our future law enforcement community through his investment in establishing the CIT program, focus on officer wellness and emphasis on diversity and inclusion initiatives.”
During his time at Southeast, Bollinger has been instrumental in bringing Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training to southeast Missouri. He has served on the State of Missouri CIT Council and the SEMO CIT Council.
“CIT is one of the most important programs we’ve added to our training at the Academy in several years,” Bollinger said. “It allows us to teach police officers how to differentiate between an uncooperative subject and someone who is having a mental health crisis.”
He has also partnered with the Cape Girardeau Police Department in developing a Peer Support network for police officers, focusing on officer’s mental health.
“Law enforcement is a job of helping others but we can’t forget to help ourselves, this is especially true when it comes to our mental health,” he said.
Additionally, Bollinger works part-time for the Cape Girardeau Police Department as a patrolman and crime analyst.
“I thoroughly enjoy working with statistics because it allows us to take a deeper look at numbers in any given situation, and determine if there is any causation or correlation, possibly giving us direction or resolution,” he said.
The Law Enforcement Academy at Southeast Missouri State University is dedicated to meeting the training needs of all law enforcement officers and agencies in the University service area. The Academy, a Missouri Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) approved provider, has provided basic and specialized training for more than 2,800 law enforcement officers since the Academy was established in 1987. Graduates have gone on to work for agencies at all levels of law enforcement including local, county, state and Federal, including the FBI, DEA, ATF and the U.S. Marshal’s Service.