Eastern Michigan University announced yesterday the rehiring of Greg O’Dell as executive director of public safety and chief of police.
Pending final approval by the Board of Regents, O’Dell will resume his duties in December and his salary will be $149,000— $20,000 less than his previous salary of $169,100 at EMU. O’Dell’s starting salary as police chief in 2008 at EMU was $130,000.
O’Dell asked that the savings be considered for “support of the DPS team,” according to a press release sent out by the campus community.
O’Dell left EMU in August of this year to become the executive director of public safety at the University of Michigan. While there, O’Dell was set to receive an annual
salary of $200,000 and he received a $30,000 signing bonus.
O’Dell, initially hired in Feb. 2008, spearheaded a number of public safety initiatives such as the Gotcha! program where yellow slips are given to students living in residence halls letting them know the doors to their rooms were unlocked. While police chief, O’Dell also increased foot patrols and a community policing approach that provided students direct access to officers. He also expanded electronic surveillance on campus by placing more than 400 cameras around campus.
In a statement, O’Dell said he was “thrilled” to return to EMU.
“I am looking forward to working with our outstanding police department team to continue the many crime reduction strategies and initiatives that we have put in place during the past three years,” he said.
As part of President Susan Martin’s Executive Council, O’Dell will continue to report information about criminal activity and campus incidents to her.
“The Chief calls me first no matter the hour of the day or night to keep me immediately informed on important incidents and has full authority to take action as he sees fit,” Martin said. “I review every police report and our campus is safer than ever. Our team works quickly to solve and prevent crime on campus.”
