Gerald Summers, director of safety and security for the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation, has been named a finalist for Campus Safety Magazine’s Campus Safety Director of the Year. Summers is one of about a dozen individuals from across the United States to be selected as a finalist. Summers will be featured in the January/February issue of Campus Safety Magazine along with the other finalists.
Summers, nominated for the award by EVSC Superintendent David Smith, has been with the EVSC for seven years and has worked to make EVSC schools and buildings safer places. “Gerald has been steadfast in his commitment to safety in the EVSC and has worked to acquire funding sources in lean times, so that the EVSC can continue to increase its focus on creating safe environments for students to succeed,†Smith said. During his time at the EVSC, Summers has acquired numerous grants in order to update emergency protocol, train staff, add safety enhancements to buildings and much more.
Summers enacted the school district’s anonymous alert system and received funds to conduct building assessments of all EVSC buildings. In 2009, he applied for and received a $249,000 Readiness Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) grant that allowed him to update emergency manuals, place to-go kits in every classroom and provide training to hundreds of individuals in the EVSC and the community. The EVSC also received $84,345 through the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant because of Summers’ work. This grant allowed the EVSC to further its goal of having exterior doors locked once school begins. Summers also works closely with local emergency personal to ensure they know the layout of EVSC buildings and protocol for various types of emergencies.
Because of the contacts he has made and the training he has undergone, Summers was asked to serve as an evaluator for an Active School Shooting Drill for the Consolidated School Corporation in southern Hancock County. In addition, Summers was awarded the Partners in Preparedness Award by the Southwestern Indiana Disaster Resistant Community Corporation in 2009 in the area of School Prevention and Mitigation. Summers also is certified as an advanced school safety specialist by the State of Indiana.
Prior to joining the EVSC, Summers served as an Evansville City Police Officer, as a special agent for L&N Railroad, and safety director at Welborn Baptist Hospital. He also worked as a probation officer and community services officer for the Vanderburgh County Juvenile Court where he worked with troubled youth.
Summers graduated from Bosse High School before continuing his education at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy and Kennedy Western College where he obtained a B.S. in safety engineering.
