Director of Protective Services

Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation•Medora, ND

7d•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Protective Services will provide strategic leadership and operational oversight for the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library’s comprehensive protective services program — ensuring the safety and security of visitors, staff, volunteers, artifacts, collections, distinguished guests, and campus infrastructure. This is a rare opportunity to help build and lead a world-class protective services operation at one of the nation’s most ambitious cultural institutions, located in the rugged beauty of North Dakota’s Badlands. This role serves as the senior leader responsible for protective services strategy, emergency preparedness, risk management, physical security systems, investigations, and operational resilience across the Library campus and related properties. The Director will lead a growing protective services department, including managers, supervisors, officers, contractors, and external security partners, while helping shape the long-term safety culture of the organization. This position is charged with protecting people, places, collections, and reputation — from daily visitor operations to highly complex events involving presidents, heads of state, dignitaries, donors, public officials, and nationally recognized guests. The Director of Protective Services will oversee protective operations not only for the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library campus, but also for select Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation events, programs, traveling exhibitions, and executive engagements across North Dakota and throughout the United States. The Director serves as the organization’s senior security and protective operations leader and works closely with executive leadership, operations, facilities, visitor experience, exhibitions, events, information technology, and external agencies to ensure a secure, welcoming, and mission-aligned environment. This role requires balancing sophisticated protective operations with hospitality, accessibility, discretion, and public trust. The ideal candidate is a calm, strategic, and highly collaborative leader with experience operating in complex public-facing environments where security, executive presence, logistics, visitor experience, and interagency coordination must work seamlessly together. This is more than a leadership role—it's an opportunity to lead a world-class protective services program at one of America's most ambitious cultural institutions. If you're ready to make a lasting impact while helping shape a legacy that will inspire generations, we encourage you to apply.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in criminal justice, emergency management, homeland security, public administration, security studies, or related field required
Minimum 8–10 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in protective services, law enforcement, military, emergency management, executive protection, or related fields
Experience leading complex security operations for cultural institutions, museums, government facilities, large public venues, presidential or political events, hospitality environments, universities, conventions, or nationally significant public events strongly preferred
Experience coordinating with federal protective agencies and executive protection operations strongly preferred
Experience managing teams, budgets, vendors, and cross-functional operational partnerships required
Onsite work location in Medora, North Dakota
Periodic travel within North Dakota and throughout the United States may be required in support of Foundation programs, executive travel, public events, and special operations
Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk, working on a computer, and monitoring security systems
Daily standing, walking, climbing stairs, and accessing operational areas across the campus
Ability to work in various environmental conditions, including extreme outdoor weather conditions common to North Dakota
Ability to respond to emergencies and operational incidents across the campus as needed
On-call responsibilities required
Evening, weekend, holiday, and event support may be required based on operational needs
Must reside within a reasonable distance of Medora, ND (less than an hour's drive or within 60 miles)
Proper use of provided PPE in accordance with safety protocols

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or advanced professional certifications preferred (CPP, PSP, CHPA, EMT, FEMA ICS/NIMS, etc.)

Responsibilities

Provide strategic leadership and operational oversight for all protective services functions across the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library campus and related properties
Lead, mentor, and manage the Protective Services leadership team, including managers, supervisors, officers, contractors, and external partners
Develop and execute the Library’s long-term protective services strategy, policies, standards, and operational roadmap
Serve as the Library’s senior liaison with law enforcement, fire/rescue, emergency management, federal agencies, and the United States Secret Service
Lead protective operations and security planning for distinguished visitors, executive leadership, donors, dignitaries, public officials, and nationally recognized guests
Oversee security planning and operational coordination for Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation events and programs both onsite and at external venues across North Dakota and the United States
Coordinate advance planning efforts, venue assessments, protective intelligence considerations, transportation coordination, emergency response planning, and interagency communication for high-profile events and visits
Lead security planning and operational coordination for protests, demonstrations, executive visits, public gatherings, and nationally significant events
Oversee all security technologies and systems, including surveillance, access control, intrusion detection, emergency communications, dispatch, and digital credentialing
Ensure effective management of physical access control systems, key control, credentialing, and restricted area security
Lead enterprise-wide emergency preparedness initiatives, including emergency operations planning, tabletop exercises, drills, continuity planning, and after-action reviews
Oversee investigations, incident response, reporting, evidence management, and digital forensics activities as appropriate
Partner closely with Facilities, IT, Visitor Experience, Events, Exhibitions, and Executive Leadership to integrate security and resilience into all operations
Collaborate with architects, engineers, and operational teams to ensure protective services considerations are embedded into campus infrastructure and future development
Develop scalable protective services protocols capable of supporting temporary venues, traveling events, donor engagements, executive travel, and nationally significant gatherings
Ensure compliance with all applicable regulations, safety standards, accreditation requirements, and industry best practices
Develop department budgets, staffing plans, operating procedures, and performance metrics
Foster a proactive culture of safety, preparedness, professionalism, accountability, and hospitality across the organization
Ensure the protection and emergency recovery readiness of collections and cultural assets in coordination with museum and conservation standards
Develop and oversee training programs related to emergency response, situational awareness, workplace violence prevention, de-escalation, active threat response, executive protection coordination, and operational readiness
Maintain comprehensive documentation for incident reports, investigations, training records, certifications, emergency exercises, and compliance activities
Participate as a key member of the Library’s operational leadership structure and emergency management team