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Russell Bentley




  • Conference keynotes
  • Safety, security, culture, climate and emergency preparedness assessments, training and consulting
  • Security technology consulting
  • Athletic events security and emergency preparedness training and consulting

Russell Bentley is a 20-year police veteran with 15 years of experience in executive positions with campus police agencies. Russell is a 2001 graduate of the FBI National Academy and has received extensive formal training in law enforcement and emergency management. He holds a Master of Science Degree in Administration and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Child Development and Family Life Education, both from Georgia College and State University. Russell is a contributing author for a 600 page university textbook Extreme Violence: Understanding and Protecting People from Active Assailants, Hate Crimes and Terrorist Attacks released by Cognella in January 2021.

During his career, he has:

  • Served as police chief for eight years at both the K-12 and post-secondary levels.
  • Served for five years with the Macon Police Department working undercover narcotics, patrol division, crime prevention bureau, communications division, housing authority unit and was promoted to police sergeant.
  • Served for eight years as the Deputy Chief of Police and for eight years as the Chief of Police for a Georgia Board of Education Campus Police Department. The department has been widely featured as a model school law enforcement partnership by many agencies including the U.S. Department of Education, the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the U.S. Department of Justice.
  • Served as Chief of Police for the Fort Valley State University Police Department for
    two years.
  • Has completed more than 1,600 hours of advanced level law enforcement and emergency management training at the state and federal level.
  • Served in the development and final review of the Jane’s Safe Schools Planning Guide for All Hazards, the Jane’s School Safety Handbook, and the Jane’s Teacher’s Safety Guide.
  • Serves as an adjunct faculty member teaching police and security technology at Central Georgia Technical College.

Russell has extensive experience in conducting school safety assessments and school safety assessment train-the-trainer programs. He has presented at state, national, and international professional conferences across the nation.