Ensights Magazine

the Ensworth security team

Staff Spotlight: the Campus Safety Team

Michelle Andrade, Assistant Director of Marketing & Communications
The ultimate goal of Ensworth’s security and risk initiative is to do everything we can to make sure people feel safe when at Ensworth. These efforts called for a need to diversify in the last several years.
Led by the Security team and Facility and Risk Manager Gloria Maas, these improvements and innovations over the past few years continue to evolve. Gloria states, “The safer the environment feels, the more opportunity exists to grow and flourish in the classroom and extra-curricular activities!”
 
Ensworth has transitioned from an outsourced, unarmed team to an in-house team with a high-level ongoing training and qualification program. Gloria shares, “I wouldn’t say that my view of security changed, but I saw the opportunity to shape security in a way that helped support the school’s mission while completely restructuring the systems that were previously in place.” Since moving security in-house, Ensworth has engaged in extensive faculty and staff training, rewritten the Emergency Operations Plan to make it National Incident Management System (NIMS) compliant, and increased video surveillance. 
 
Since 2021, Ensworth has also added an armed component to our defense capabilities while hiring several prior law enforcement officers. Combined, our armed security personnel bring approximately 60 years of law enforcement experience to Ensworth, giving the school a much more in-depth reactionary force to any outside threat. The security personnel is now more identifiable, with an official Ensworth security uniform. This presence both discourages threats and encourages positive, constructive interaction with the Ensworth community. 
 
In addition, the Risk Management Office has undertaken a significant initiative to increase the safety of the Ensworth community through faculty and staff training. Faculty and staff have undergone medical and trauma-related training by participating in activities such as tourniquet application while under controlled stress. This training, which also included active shooter scenarios, has occurred in individual classrooms, allowing for discussion of courses of action in emergencies. This has also helped to build rapport between Security/Risk Management and faculty by providing a more individualized approach and meeting faculty and staff in their working environment. This ongoing effort will equip teachers and staff members with the necessary skills to take quick, decisive action in a crisis. 
 
School safety is the responsibility of the entire Ensworth community. As we strengthen our relationships and make these security practices the norm, we will continue to raise the standards by which we keep our students safe.
the security car
Sam Bady, the Lead Officer on Frist Campus, is from Meridian, Mississippi, and attended the University of Southern Mississippi, studying medical laboratory technology. He is a long-time law enforcement veteran, beginning his career in 1987 for the Tallahassee Police Department. He has also worked for the Roswell, Georgia, police department on undercover narcotics and S.W.A.T. units. Sam retired from the Brentwood Police Department after 25 years of service. Sam has served as a D.A.R.E. Officer and is highly certified in self-defense. Sam has completed the Basic & Advanced School Resource Officer courses through the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) and holds a School Safety Specialist certification through the School Safety Advocacy Council (SSAC). He resides in Brentwood with his wife, Deborah, and two rescue dogs. 
 
Alan Baker is a native of Tennessee and has been providing contracted security to Ensworth for the past six years. He recently became an Ensworth employee and is our new unarmed Campus Safety Coordinator for the Red Gables Campus. Alan serves to augment both the security and facilities teams in their efforts and is assigned to the 12:30 – 9:00 p.m. shift. Alan resides in Kingston Springs with his wife, Karen. They have been married for 25 years and have two children. 
 
Antonio “Tony” Fernandes is a native of New York and is an 11-year veteran of the NYPD. Tony’s experience with the NYPD included stints in the special operations division, anti-terrorism, uniformed patrol, and special transit investigations. He is bilingual and fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese. Tony holds a bachelor’s degree from Farmingdale State College in New York and is assigned to the Frist Campus from 12:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. He has recently moved to Dickson and resides with his wife and children. 
 
Dustin Hargrove, the Lead Officer on Red Gables Campus, is from Dickson, Tennessee. He graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a B.S. in Criminal Justice and has been a police officer and detective with the city of Dickson for the past eight years. Dustin has completed the Basic & Advanced School Resource Officer courses through the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO). He also holds a School Safety Specialist certification through the School Safety Advocacy Council (SSAC). He has a wife and two children. 
 
Gloria Maas is from Jacksonville, Florida, and has been in Nashville since 2018. Hired initially as a Fitness Instructor and Varsity Volleyball Head Coach, she transitioned into her current role as Facility and Risk Manager. Her background includes a wealth of pertinent knowledge from her studies at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, where she earned her B.S. in Homeland Security with a concentration in Emergency Management. She also holds a Tactical Emergency Casualty Care certification. Gloria is a mother to her son, Ryland, and stepmom to her daughter, Scarlett. 
 
Dameyon Mason serves as the new Frist Campus Safety Coordinator for the overnight shift. Alongside his experiences as a security guard, Dameyon loves working with people. He was employed with Outwood, where he assisted in teaching adults with intellectual disabilities to be more independent in their day-to-day lives. 
 
Glenn Melton is from Burns, Tennessee, and has worked as an outsourced security officer for several years. He recently became an Ensworth employee and is our new, unarmed weekend Campus Safety Coordinator for the Frist Campus. Glenn serves to augment both the security and facilities teams in their efforts and is assigned to the 6 am – 6 pm shift on Saturdays and Sundays. He often fills other shifts throughout the week as needed. Glenn enjoys playing music during his personal time and is an avid mandolin player.
 
Ron Mikulka is from Brooklyn, New York, and has recently become an Ensworth employee, serving as our new unarmed Campus Safety Coordinator for the Frist Campus. Ron assists the security and facilities teams in their efforts and is assigned to the 11:30 am – 8 pm shift. Ron resides in Chapel Hill with his wife, Lynn Marie. They have been married for 31 years.
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Red Gables Campus (K–8)

Nashville, TN 37205
(615) 383-0661

Frist Campus (9–12)

Nashville, TN 37221
(615) 301-5400
Ensworth is a coeducational, kindergarten through twelfth grade, independent day school.