Eric Dlugolenski is in his ninth year of service to the City of West Haven, CT. Prior to promotion, he served as a Community Resource Officer, Field Training Officer, and Court Liaison. Once promoted, he completed a short tenure with the Uniformed Services Division before he was appointed as the supervisor of the Professional Standards Division. He is currently updating the policies and procedures for the police department, pursuing grant opportunities, and seeking State accreditation. Eric is a ranking member and strong advocate for the department’s peer support team, which promotes officer health, well-being, and resiliency.

Eric holds a BA in political science from the University of Connecticut (UCONN), an MS degree in criminal justice administration from the University of New Haven (UNH), and is a PhD candidate at the Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice at UNH specializing in police science. Eric is a certified Connecticut Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POSTC) instructor. Eric has also been an adjunct professor for the UNH Criminal Justice Department since 2014. He has taught undergraduate courses in quantitative applications and research methods for criminal justice, problem-oriented policing, police in a free and democratic society, and police psychology and investigations. He has co-authored a peer-reviewed study of police foot patrols and strives to remain active both as a practitioner and academic. His dissertation research focuses on the utility of order-maintenance policing when delivered in accordance with the advancements of procedural justice.

Eric is a member of the 2019 class of National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Law Enforcement Advancing Data and Science (LEADS) Scholars. Eric has also received a scholarship award to participate in the 2020 Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) Doctoral Summit.

Eric is a member of the American Society of Evidence-Based Policing (ASEBP) and is a passionate advocate for evidence-based policing. He believes in building bridges with resource-challenged communities, advancing the professionalism of police service through organizational processes, and creating institutional cultures that promote officer resiliency. Eric is proud to be part of the national conversation encouraging thoughtful police reform and honored to be recognized as a National Policing Institute Fellow.