Director of Safety & Emergency Management

BREC Recreation And Park Commission for the Parish of East Baton Rouge•Baton Rouge, LA

About The Position

The Director of Safety and Emergency Management leads BREC’s agencywide approach to protecting visitors, employees, volunteers, Commissioners, executives, facilities, programs, and public assets. The Director establishes standards, evaluates risk, recommends improvements, coordinates training and exercises, and ensures that BREC is prepared to work effectively with first responders before, during, and after a significant incident. Reporting directly to the Superintendent/CEO, the Director serves as BREC’s principal liaison to the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, Baton Rouge Police Department, municipal police and fire departments, East Baton Rouge EMS, the Mayor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, Louisiana State Police, GOHSEP, and other public-safety partners. The position must be equally comfortable assessing a park, briefing the Commission, coordinating a special event, developing Requirements and Job Specifications.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in criminal justice, emergency management, homeland security, public administration, occupational safety, organizational leadership, or a closely related field; or an equivalent combination of education, professional training, certification, and progressively responsible experience that demonstrates the competencies required for the position.
At least eight years of full-time, progressively responsible law-enforcement experience.
At least three years of formal supervisory, command, or comparable public-safety leadership responsibility.
Demonstrated working knowledge of emergency planning, NIMS/ICS, emergency operations, continuity, training and exercises, and multi-agency response.
Operational familiarity with fire, EMS, 911, scene safety, mass-casualty coordination, CPR/AED, and the respective roles of police, fire, EMS, and emergency management is required.
Current or previously held state POST peace-officer certification or equivalent federal law-enforcement credential, with service in good standing at separation.
Valid driver’s license in good standing.
An employee relocating from another state must be able to obtain a Louisiana driver’s license within 60 days of hire when required by BREC policy.
Sound judgment during urgent, sensitive, confidential, and high-visibility situations.
Strong working knowledge of law enforcement, emergency management, physical security, incident command, fire and EMS coordination, workplace violence prevention, and public-sector operations.
Ability to assess risk, distinguish urgent conditions from long-term improvements, develop practical options, and communicate clear recommendations.
Ability to build trusted working relationships with first responders, elected and appointed officials, Commissioners, executives, employees, contractors, community partners, and the public.
Strong writing, briefing, training, facilitation, negotiation, and presentation skills.
Ability to lead through influence across departments while maintaining clear accountability for assigned staff, contractors, plans, projects, and corrective actions.
Integrity, discretion, calm decision-making, political and organizational awareness, and commitment to fair and respectful public service.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in a related field.
Ten or more years of progressively responsible law-enforcement or public-safety experience, including five or more years in supervisory, command, or executive leadership.
Experience leading security and emergency preparedness for a large public agency, park system, campus, healthcare system, transit system, public venue, or other multi-site organization.
Louisiana Emergency Manager (LEM), Associate Emergency Manager (AEM), Certified Emergency Manager (CEM), Certified Protection Professional (CPP), Physical Security Professional (PSP), or comparable credential.
FEMA Master Exercise Practitioner, continuity practitioner training, advanced NIMS/ICS credentials, CPTED certification, threat-assessment training, or related professional development.
Current or former EMT, Advanced EMT, Paramedic, firefighter, emergency medical responder, or other recognized fire/EMS credential; or substantial documented operational experience coordinating with EMS and fire services.
Experience with security operations centers, video management, access control, contract security, off-duty law-enforcement programs, special-event command, workplace violence prevention, and public-board or executive security.

Responsibilities

Develop, implement, and regularly update a multi-year safety, security, and emergency-preparedness plan with clear priorities, owners, schedules, budgets, and measures of progress.
Establish consistent agency standards for physical security, visitor safety, employee security, emergency readiness, incident reporting, and corrective-action follow-up across BREC’s diverse facilities and programs.
Conduct and document risk-based assessments of parks, recreation centers, trails, pools, golf courses, administrative offices, maintenance locations, special-event venues, and other facilities.
Apply Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design and other recognized practices when reviewing existing sites, proposed renovations, new facilities, and capital projects.
Maintain a prioritized corrective-action register and work with Operations, Planning and Engineering, Information Technology, Human Resources, Risk, Legal, Finance, and department leaders to resolve identified gaps.
Analyze calls for service, incident and injury reports, theft, vandalism, suspicious activity, near misses, response coordination, and other available data.
Serve as BREC’s primary operational liaison to public-safety partners.
Develop and maintain points of contact, notification procedures, response protocols, jurisdictional maps, radio and communications procedures, video and evidence-request processes, and written agreements needed for effective coordination.
Use calls-for-service and incident data to recommend patrol coordination, off-duty law-enforcement assignments, contract-security deployment, event coverage, and other prevention or response strategies.
Coordinate joint site visits, tabletop exercises, drills, after-action reviews, and operational planning with outside agencies.
Represent BREC in relevant public-safety, emergency-management, threat-information, training, and preparedness meetings.
Provide strategic and operational oversight for BREC’s Security Operations Center, security personnel, contract guards, off-duty law-enforcement services, and related resources.
Establish post orders, operating procedures, escalation thresholds, quality standards, training expectations, scheduling practices, and performance measures for internal and contracted security operations.
In partnership with Information Technology and responsible departments, establish standards for cameras, video retention and access, access-control systems, alarms, duress devices, radios, emergency call stations, mass notification, and other security technology.
Evaluate proposed security purchases and contracts for effectiveness, interoperability, life-cycle cost, privacy, records retention, staffing requirements, and ongoing maintenance.
Monitor vendor performance and recommend corrective action when service expectations are not met.
Maintain appropriate access to critical security information and ensure that sensitive plans, video, access records, threat information, and incident documentation are handled in accordance with law and BREC policy.
Establish a risk-based safety and security review process for festivals, tournaments, concerts, public meetings, camps, races, fireworks, aquatic events, and other high-attendance or higher-risk activities.
Coordinate event plans addressing law enforcement, EMS, fire protection, traffic, parking, crowd management, weather, communications, lost-child and reunification procedures, evacuation, sheltering, accessibility, and command responsibilities.
Recommend event-specific staffing, equipment, medical support, thresholds for delay or cancellation, and other conditions needed to operate safely.
Develop, maintain, and test BREC’s all-hazards Emergency Operations Plan, Continuity of Operations Plan, emergency-notification procedures, and facility or program annexes.
Align BREC plans and training with the National Incident Management System, Incident Command System, parish emergency operations, and the plans of responding agencies.
Create an annual training and exercise program for employees and leaders, including ICS/NIMS, active-threat response, evacuation and sheltering, emergency communications, workplace violence, de-escalation, CPR/AED, Stop the Bleed, severe weather, incident reporting, and role-specific procedures.
Coordinate tabletop, functional, and full-scale exercises; document findings; assign corrective actions; and verify completion.
Use exercises and actual incidents to improve plans, training, facilities, and resource decisions.
Maintain emergency contacts, resource inventories, mutual-aid information, call-down procedures, incident forms, briefing templates, and other readiness materials in accessible and secure formats.
Remain available for emergency recall and respond to significant incidents when established activation thresholds are met or when requested by the Superintendent/CEO.
Serve as BREC’s agency representative or liaison within the applicable incident-command or unified-command structure.
Support scene coordination without interfering with the lawful authority of police, fire, EMS, emergency management, the coroner, or other responding agencies.
Coordinate timely notifications to executive leadership, Legal, Human Resources, Risk, Communications, Information Technology, facility leadership, Commissioners, insurers, and other parties based on the nature of the incident and applicable protocols.
Support preservation of relevant information, video, access records, reports, and other evidence; coordinate requests from law enforcement; and ensure that administrative review does not compromise a criminal, regulatory, personnel, or insurance investigation.
Lead or coordinate after-action review, recovery planning, employee support, service restoration, and corrective-action tracking.
Provide accurate executive briefings and written summaries appropriate to the audience and legal requirements.
Advise Human Resources, Risk, Legal, and department leaders on workplace violence prevention, threat reporting, threat assessment, domestic-violence spillover, employee security, lone-worker practices, cash handling, opening and closing procedures, field operations, and other safety concerns.
Develop clear procedures for employees to report threats, suspicious activity, safety concerns, and security incidents.
Ensure reports receive timely triage, documentation, escalation, and follow-up.
Coordinate risk-based protective planning for Commission meetings, high-profile public events, controversial proceedings, credible threats, and executive or Commissioner safety concerns.
Arrange law-enforcement or security support when warranted.
Support employee safety committees, onboarding, supervisor training, and targeted safety communication in coordination with responsible departments.
Recommend improvements based on incident trends and employee feedback.
Serve as the Superintendent/CEO’s principal advisor on physical safety, security, emergency preparedness, critical-incident readiness, and related organizational risk.
Prepare policies, standard operating procedures, executive briefings, Commission materials, risk assessments, budget requests, implementation plans, and recommendations that are accurate, practical, and supported by available evidence.
Develop and administer assigned budgets, contracts, grants, projects, equipment, and personnel.
Establish service expectations, monitor performance, and develop staff through training, coaching, and evaluation.
Coordinate with other departments so safety and security are incorporated into everyday decisions.
Track changes in law, standards, technology, threat conditions, and professional practice.
Recommend updates to BREC policy, facilities, staffing, agreements, training, and investments.
Perform other related duties and lead other safety, security, or emergency-preparedness initiatives as assigned by the Superintendent/CEO.