Executive Director For Safety And Security

Job Title: Executive Director for Safety & Security

Supervisor: Superintendent

Terms of Employment: 246 days

Job Summary:

Responsible for directing, planning, implementing, and coordinating all District safety initiatives, including emergency preparedness and school safety and security operations. This includes coordinating with law enforcement and outside agencies regarding threat assessment and other safety, security, and emergency operations, and developing policies and procedures for safe and secure schools and District property.

Essential Duties

• Direct, plan, organize, and implement the District's safety and security program.

• Develop procedures/guidelines related to safety and security, including emergency preparedness and response, threat assessment, and prevention of and response to violence on school grounds.

• Make recommendations and advise senior leadership, school administration, and other appropriate staff members regarding investigative activities and proper practices/procedures necessary to secure the safe and peaceful conduct of District and school business/activities.

• Respond in-person to critical incidents and take appropriate action to support school staff.

• Develop an After-Action Report (modeled on U.S. Department of Education guidelines) to be completed following any critical incident occurring at a school or on District property.

• Visit school campuses on a frequent basis to develop and maintain a positive rapport with teachers, principals, staff members, and students.

• Plan and deliver trainings to school staff that address topics such as methods for searching students' bags, the dangers of vapes, CBD gummies, as well as any other topics that present potential safety threats to students.

• Assist school administrators with de-escalating confrontations between students, parents, visitors, community members, and others.

• Serve as liaison to the Horry County Police Department and municipal police departments, as well as state and federal law enforcement agencies.

• Ensure that law enforcement partners are invited to participate in school intruder drills and any other drills that promote safety on school campuses.

• Assist in the investigation of potential violations of District/school rules and/or the law in cooperation with law enforcement.

• Establish, monitor, and maintain search procedures for students, staff, and visitors that are consistent in all schools District wide.

• Ensure that weapons detection devices are calibrated, maintained, and are in proper working condition.

• Develop and maintain a digital inventory of all District-owned weapons detection devices.

• Oversee the District's School Resource Officer (SRO) program in collaboration with the sponsoring law enforcement agency.

• Oversee the School Security Officer (SSO) program. Coordinate with security company on the selection and training of school SSO's. Develop and plan pre-service and in-service training sessions. Monitor the performance of SSO's and recommend staffing changes when necessary.

• Supervise assigned personnel, conduct annual performance appraisals, make recommendations for appropriate employment actions, and develop staff development training for all assigned staff.

• Serve as the District's liaison for emergency operations, and lead the response and recovery during and after emergencies in coordination with elected officials, local administrators, non-profit organizations, constitutional officers, and other private sector and government agencies.

• Coordinate safety and security assessments with facilities personnel for all school facilities.

• Perform other duties as assigned.

Other Duties

Perform such other tasks and assume such other responsibilities as may from time to time be assigned.

Job Specifications

Performance of this job will be evaluated annually in accordance with provisions of the District's policy on evaluation of Professional Personnel.

Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Required)

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in Criminal Justice or related field

• Ten years of experience in law enforcement, the military, security, or a related field, with at least three years in a supervisory or administrative capacity; OR any equivalent combination of education and experience which provides the required knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the essential duties and responsibilities of the position

• Knowledge of weapons and gun safety

• Ability to be physically and mentally prepared to respond in an emergency or potentially dangerous situation

• Ability to establish and maintain collaborative working relationships with school administration, staff, law enforcement, and other outside agencies

• Ability to conduct threat assessments

• Ability to obtain information through visual observation and interviews

• Operating knowledge of computer programs, including email, word processing, spreadsheets, and databases

• Proficient in cloud-based computer productivity applications

• Ability to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences, orally and in writing, including electronic media

• Excellent time management skills and ability to organize, prioritize, and manage work assignments in an efficient manner and within established timeframes.

Certificates, Licenses & Registrations

• Valid South Carolina driver's license

• Satisfactory completion of American Red Cross First Aid and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) course or agreement to earn within one year of employment

Physical Requirements

The physical demands identified below are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to walk, sit, stand, and reach with hands and arms, stoop or kneel, and crouch.

Additional physical requirements include the following:

• Physically capable of frequently lifting or moving up to 40 pounds,

• Sufficiently mobile to ensure the safety of students,

• Specific vision requirements include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to focus,

• Ability to sit and stand for extended periods of time,

• Manual dexterity for the purpose of using a telephone and data entry,

• Ability to read a computer screen and printed material with or without vision aids,

• Ability to hear and understand speech at normal levels and on the telephone; and

• Ability to speak in audible tones so that others may understand clearly in person and on the telephone.

Work Environment

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Pay Grade: 310

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by this employee. The employee will be required to follow any other instructions and to perform any other related duties as assigned by the appropriate administrator or supervisor. Horry County Schools reserves the right to update, revise, or change this job description and related duties at any time without prior notice.