Standing Up Teams

Date: 06 November 2024

Time: 12pm ET

Is a Security Team Right for my House of Worship? This session will explore the entry points for the program – highlight the pertinent questions to be explored, introduce the key concepts and considerations, look at various approaches House of Worship and communities have taken, and how to get started on the path toward developing the appropriate security structure for your House of Worship.

• Overview to the Topic
• Outline What the Audience Can Expect
• Key Concepts and Considerations
• What Kind of Security Team is Best for My House of Worship?
• Discussions with leadership

Panelists

• Ed Heyman, Co-Chair of the Operational Resilience Group. Ed’s professional experience includes standing up and training specialized intelligence teams. Currently, Ed draws on his subject matter expertise in terrorism and threat assessment. He is extremely active in the Orange County, California Jewish community where he has lived since 1979.
• Phil Froehlich, Co-Chair of the Business Resilience Group. Phil is a founder and Chief Operating Officer of Integris Security where he manages the operational success of the company, leads partnership initiatives, and provides oversight on client engagements. He serves as an Advisor to both National and New York metro initiatives of InfraGard, an FBI public/private partnership for critical infrastructure protection. Phil is also very active in security initiatives for faith-based communities and regularly advises houses of worship and related institutions on physical and information security threats and safeguards.  He is a member of both the NJ Office of Homeland Security Interfaith Advisory Council and the US Secret Service Cyber Fraud Task Force.
• Dan Graeber. Consultant and Training Specialist. Dan Graeber is seasoned consultant and very well versed trainer. Dan is a native Texan who has over 30 years in training and management and spent much of that time traveling to over 95% of the U.S. and twenty-five other countries training key personnel on everything from visual technologies to personal defense. Having a diverse background in threat identification methods and technology he helps companies, schools, and Faith Based Organizations identify best practices for identifying concerning behaviors and de-escalating heated encounters. Dan has held positions as a Senior Consultant, VP – Faith Based Initiatives, Applications Engineer, General Manager, and Worldwide Training Manager. He has a unique approach to helping volunteers and employees feel valued and safe in their positions. He sees an organizations’ associates, volunteer or staff, as their most valued assets. Dan is a seasoned professional trainer in multiple industries, in which he has written trend setting curriculum. Dan is also a licensed Security Consultant and certifies Executive Protection officers and Uniformed Security. Dan is a member of FBI InfraGard and Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN). He continually refines methods of communicating key strategies to diverse groups.
• Dan Avondoglio. Dan’s full-time gig is with the Active Assailant Security Branch within the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Dan has been supporting FB-ISAO initiatives and we are so grateful that he chooses to volunteer his time serving this community. He brings more than 20 years of personal experience with the U.S. Navy and a wealth of knowledge from CISA.
• John McCammon: Like many in the FB-ISAO, the majority of John’s career was not in full time house of worship security. In 2007 he began developing procedures for his local church volunteers to respond to threat events which eventually led to a full-time position at a very large church to develop and manage the security program and its volunteers.  He is now retired and offers no cost security program consulting to smaller houses of worship.  He is heavily involved in the development of a physical security maturity model with FB-ISAO and is also a member of the American Society of Industrial Security and InfraGard.
• Karl Yesse. Karl has devoted himself fully to the Safety & Security of the Jewish community. Karl says, “I have come to understand that the “connecting tissue” of my journey to a committed Safety & Security mindset is – curiosity. Throughout all of these phases, the common denominator was always curiosity – to dig deeply into what was needed to perform my assigned duties (by myself or by others) to the best of my ability. “Boots on the ground / Nose to the Grindstone”. Karl brings that perspective to this group!
• Bill Cooper. Bill is a security expert and a retired Chief of Police. Bill possesses vast experience in physical security, having done numerous assessments of business, schools, churches and other organizations. Bill writes policy and procedure, training programs for security and has conducted numerous threat assessments and risk management assessments. He is the current Director of Security for the Cedar Park churches and schools; he writes Emergency Operations Plans, Emergency Response Plans and consults with a number of other churches. Bill built a Threat Intelligence and Management program and has a team of experts to receive, assess and manage threats.
• Ken Martin. Ken Martin, Chief Executive Officer, Praetorian Agency. Ken Martin began his career in law enforcement in 1988 as a Correction Officer and continued his professional service, earning numerous awards and commendations, until his retirement as a Captain in 2013. During his career, Ken served as the Commander of the Corrections Emergency Response Team, Commander of Basic Training (Corrections) at the Ocean County Police Academy, and Department Rangemaster. He has over 20 years of experience in both volunteer and career Emergency Medical Services, Fire/Rescue and Underwater Search and Rescue. He is currently a certified Handgun, Shotgun, Rifle and Submachinegun Instructor. He is also a certified instructor for the New Jersey State Police Security Officer Registration Act (S.O.R.A.) training program and New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice Retired Police Officer Firearms Instructor.

Planning (Threat/Vulnerability/Risk Assessment)

• Developing or looking to mature/improve the organization’s security program Physical Security Performance Goals for Faith-Based Communities | CISA
• Security planning basics Protecting Places of Worship: Six Steps to Enhance Security Against Targeted Violence Fact Sheet | CISA
• Comprehensive security planning workbook Security Planning Workbook | CISA
• Looking to do a facility security self-assessment / vulnerability assessment Houses of Worship | CISA

Hiring/Firing Decision Support

• When hiring a member of the security team Resources for Onboarding and Employment Screening Fact Sheet | CISA
• When terminating/separating a member of the security team ISC Guide: Managing Risk of Adverse/Involuntary Employee Separations | CISA

Training

• When training members of the security team (as well as “Greeters”)
  • Employee Vigilance – Power of Hello | CISA
  • De-escalation Series | CISA
  • Preventing Workplace Violence: Security Awareness Considerations Infographic | CISA
  • VIDEO – Violence Prevention through De-escalation Video | CISA
  • Stop the Bleed | Homeland Security (dhs.gov)
  • Foundations of Targeted Violence Prevention | Homeland Security (dhs.gov)

• Other topics to consider for security staff:
  • First aid, CPR, AED
  • Use-of-force
  • Advanced Situational Awareness