Articles with situational awareness

Interview With Jason Russell, Founder & President of SEC

SemperVerus interviewed Jason Russell, former US Secret Service agent and founder and president of Secure Environment Consultants (SEC). Jason earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Western Michigan University and a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice and Security Management from Michigan State University. He started his career at the Lansing Police Department.

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Please describe Secure Environment Consultants (SEC) and its mission.
Secure Environment Consultants (SEC) is a national security consulting and training firm dedicated to helping organizations protect people, mission, and continuity of operations. Our mission is rooted in prevention, preparedness, and people-first security strategies. We partner with organizations to assess risk, develop clear plans, and train teams to respond effectively to real-world threats. At our core, SEC exists to help leaders make informed decisions that reduce risk, strengthen resilience, and safeguard the communities they serve.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Interview With Christian Clark: Creator of Secure The Church App ]

Among the organizations SEC serves are houses of worship. What top security risks has SEC identified for faith-based organizations?
Faith-based organizations face a unique combination of risks due to their open and welcoming nature. Common concerns include:

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Interview With Christian Clark: Creator of Secure The Church App

SemperVerus interviewed Christian Clark, owner and lead architect at Swell Development, LLC. He is also a broadly experienced volunteer on his megachurch security team. He is the creator of a fascinating and comprehensive new mobile app developed explicitly for church security teams and other church ministries where communication among volunteers is vital.

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From your experience as a volunteer church security team member, what is the need you’ve seen for creating an app that focuses on church safety and security?
As I served throughout the years on church security, I began to notice areas of deficiency in the way that church security was normally executed. There were many gaps in planning, communication, engagement, and visibility that created potential areas where church security could fail. Secure The Church aims to close those gaps.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Checklist: Church Security/Safety Equipment ]

What is the Secure The Church app?
Many churches have already created security teams to help secure themselves from the various threats they face. Secure The Church is a software as a service (SaaS) application that allows churches of any size to take their security teams to the next level by helping them create and implement a strong security plan and by increasing volunteer communication, engagement, and visibility.

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The Parking Lot: The First Part of a Security Incident

The International Protective Security Board (IPSB) is an independent, nonprofit entity devoted to promoting the protection industry’s interests by focusing on protective security trends, best practices, and professional development.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Protection Book Review: Just 2 Seconds ]

With its Latin motto of “Vigilate” (keep watch or stay alert), “Semper Discentes” (always learning), and “Et Honorem” (and honor), it encompasses all public-facing sectors requiring security attention, including faith-based organizations.

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Its semiannual publication is The Close Protection & Security Journal. Volume 2, Issue 1 includes the article, “The Parking Lot: The First Part of a Security Incident” (PDF) by Greg Williams and Brian Marren of Arcadia Cognerati, the principles of which can be applicable for church security teams.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, The 5 Lines of Defense in Church Security, Beginning Outside ]

It begins, “Before a school shooter can start killing, before a bank robber can pass a note to a teller, and before someone can rob a gas station, they have to pass through a parking lot. In the parking lot, the element of time and distance between the perpetrator and their victim already exists. You need to learn to exploit it to yield opportunity.”

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Active Killer Advice Compendium

A valuable online reference resource is the Active Killer Advice Compendium on the Active Response Training website.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A List of Active Killer Incidents at Houses of Worship and Religious Schools ]

The website’s owner, retired police officer Greg Ellifritz, says, “People want to know what tactics and strategies will help them prevail should they be present during an active killer attack in a public place. I’ve been writing about the topic for almost two decades. Other folks have been studying the problem for even longer than that. I’ve written 400 articles about active killer attacks. I’ve linked to over 1000 more articles on the same topic written by other authors. This is a compilation of the best of all that writing.”

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