Security and Risk Assessment for Facility and Event Managers

Stacey A. Hall, PhD, is the executive director of the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4) and professor of sport management at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM), where she developed a graduate-level emphasis in sport security management for the master's program. In her role as executive director of NCS4, Hall oversees training and education, research, and outreach initiatives to promote the safety and security of facilities and events.

Hall's expertise is in the area of sport safety and security management, and her research has been published in many journals on sport management, homeland security, and emergency management. She has coauthored or authored numerous textbooks on sport facility and event management, crisis communications, and emergency response and recovery. As one of the nation’s leading experts in sport security, she has been interviewed by USA Today, ESPN the Magazine, and CBS New York and has presented at international and national conferences, including as a contributing expert to the first international sport security conference in Doha, Qatar, in 2011. She was named a VenueNow Women of Live recipient in 2021. 

Hall has been the principal investigator on various projects funded by grants from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; these were used to develop a risk management curriculum for sport security personnel at NCAA institutions, conduct risk assessments at college sport stadiums, and develop training programs for sport venue staff. She has also been involved in several service projects, including security planning for a K-12 school district and development of a post–Hurricane Katrina disaster mitigation plan for the Mississippi Regional Housing Authority.

James A. McGee, PhD, is an associate professor of criminal justice at William Carey University. He holds a bachelor of science degree from California Polytechnic State University, a master of science degree from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a specialist degree in higher education administration from William Carey University.

McGee has 25 years of law enforcement experience, more than 20 of which he spent as a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) addressing international security issues, counterterrorism investigations, foreign counterintelligence, computer crimes, crisis management, critical infrastructure protection, risk assessments, tactical operations, and homeland security initiatives. During his FBI tenure, McGee was assigned to four FBI field offices, the Critical Incident Response Group (Hostage Rescue Team), FBI headquarters, and the U.S. Embassy in Athens, Greece. He held several leadership positions, including as security coordinator for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games. He has received numerous awards, including the FBI Shield of Bravery, the FBI Medal for Meritorious Achievement, the FBI Medal of Valor, and the U.S. Attorney General's Award for Exceptional Heroism.

He is also the award-winning author of Phase Line Green: The FCI Talladega Hostage Rescue (2009) and is the coauthor of multiple textbooks.

Walter E. Cooper, EdD, is a professor emeritus and the director of the interscholastic administration program at William Carey University. Cooper has extensive experience as a higher education administrator. With expertise in training and organizational development, he has vast experience in both the public and private sectors.

Cooper served as director of training at the University of Southern Mississippi’s National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4), where he was responsible for training trainers and controlling quality for implementation of 80 training workshops nationwide. He also served as a senior consultant for Atlanta Consulting Group, where he facilitated teamwork training for Fortune 500 companies.

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Cooper participated in numerous U.S. Department of Homeland Security Projects by writing and facilitating grants in the area of sport event security management. He has partnered with associates in developing FEMA courses and training of trainers for a wide range of venues. He also served as an evaluator of trainers for Louisiana State University’s National Center for Biomedical Research and Training and as the external evaluator for an emergency planning grant at Texas A&M University. Cooper has extensive experience as a higher education administrator.