Terrorism Expert and Scotch Plains-Fanwood H.S. Alum Earns Doctorate

Erroll G. Southers, an internationally recognized terrorism expert, recently earned his doctoral degree at the University of Southern California (USC). His thesis was entitled, Homegrown Violent Extremism: Designing a Community-Based Model to Reduce the Risk of Radicalization and Recruitment.

Dr. Southers is the Associate Director of Research Transition at the Department of Homeland Security National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE). He was President Barack Obama’s first nominee for Transportation Security Administration Assistant Secretary, and he was also California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Deputy Director for Critical Infrastructure of the California Office of Homeland Security.

Dr. Southers’ career has spanned all levels of law enforcement, formerly serving as Assistant Chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence at the Los Angeles World Airports Police Department. He also previously enjoyed the distinction of FBI Special Agent and SWAT team member, as well as Santa Monica Police Officer. He served on the faculty and tactical staff of the Rio Hondo Police Academy.

Currently, Dr. Southers holds roles throughout the international counterterrorism and national security arena, including: Visiting Fellow and member of the Professional Advisory Board of the International Institute of Counter-Terrorism in Herzliya, Israel; a member of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Homeland Security Project; a Senior Fellow at the UCLA School of Public Affairs; and a member of the Advisory Committee for the Command, Control and Interoperability Center for Advanced Data Analysis (CCICADA) at Rutgers University. He is also the Managing Director of the Counter-Terrorism and Infrastructure Protection Division for TAL Global Corporation, an international security consulting firm.

Dr. Southers has testified before the full Congressional Committee on Homeland Security as a subject matter expert and counterterrorism analyst. At USC, he developed the Executive Program in Counterterrorism and serves as an adjunct professor of Homeland Security and Public Policy in the Sol Price School of Public Policy. He is a regular contributor to national and international media networks on matters of terrorism and national security, and the author of Homegrown Violent Extremism.

Dr. Southers was the recipient of the Earl Warren Outstanding Public Service Award, was recognized in Security Magazine’s Top 25 Most Influential Industry Thought Leaders in the United States, and was a member of the Los Angeles Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Panel on Airport Security at LAX. He earned his undergraduate degree from Brown University and his masters in public administration from USC.