Investigator Earns Statewide Officer of The Year Recognition

Congrats to Georgia Southern’s own investigator, Samuel Derr, who has been honored as Officer of the Year by the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police (GACP). The Marine Corps veteran joined the University in 2017 as a police officer. He’s since become an investigator assigned to the criminal investigation unit, where he works to keep Georgia Southern’s campuses and students safe. When presented with the award, Derr was quick to credit his fellow officers as the key to his success. 

“It’s an honor to accept this award, but every officer I work with deserves this,” Derr said. “I couldn’t do what I do without them. I enjoy serving the Georgia Southern community because we have a special mission. It’s to protect our students and our campus. To be able to carry out that mission, that’s what’s important to me.”

He is the first officer from the Georgia Southern University Police Department to be recognized as Officer of the Year by the GACP.