COMMUNITY NEWS
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia mobilizes
financial and volunteer resources to address the
communities’ most critical priorities locally, in Israel and
around the world.

T Jewish Federation Brings on
Law Enforcement Veteran
Scott Kerns from SCN
he Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia launched an
expanded community security initiative in partnership with
the Secure Community Network in late September.

SCN is the official safety and security organization for the Jewish
community in North America.

Designed to significantly increase safety and security, this con-
certed effort is for all those who participate in synagogues, day
schools, community centers, service organizations and other centers
of Jewish life throughout the Greater Philadelphia region.

Serving as Greater Philadelphia’s full-time security executive
is public safety expert and law enforcement veteran Scott Kerns,
who assumed the role of community security director on Sept. 28.

Leveraging the national resources and tools of SCN, Kerns is focused
on the development and administration of a comprehensive program
that provides risk mitigation, security consultations, assessments and
training to Jewish institutions throughout the region. In addition,
Kerns serves as the Jewish community’s main liaison to local, state
and federal law enforcement in the region.

An integral part of this community-based role, Kerns leads edu-
cation and awareness training through SCN’s flagship training
courses, such as “Be Aware: Introduction to Situational Awareness,”
“Countering Active Threat Training” and “Stop the Bleed.”
Community Security Director Scott Kerns from Secure Community Network joined the Jewish
Courtesy of Scott Kerns
“As America faces dramatic increases in antisemitic threats and Federation of Greater Philadelphia on Sept. 28.
incidents, Jewish communal security has never been more import-
ant,” said Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia President and CEO Michael the local effort.”
Balaban. “Through this new partnership, we will enhance our commitment to
Before joining SCN, Kerns served as a special agent in the New York and
security and ensure we are applying a comprehensive, best-practice approach. Philadelphia Divisions of the FBI from 1998 to 2022. He worked in a variety of
Scott’s extensive experience makes him a tremendous asset for this effort.”
programs, including white-collar crime, technical operations, organized crime,
Philadelphia joins the growing network of Federations and communities that international terrorism, crisis management and recruiting.

have partnered with SCN to launch community-wide security programs to ensure
Among his many assignments, Kerns helped direct security efforts for major
the safety, security and resilience of the Jewish people. Each program is connected events, such as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, New York City Marathon,
to SCN’s national operations, providing direct access to SCN’s National Jewish New Year’s Eve in Times Square, United Nations General Assembly, Super Bowl
Security Operations Command Center and Duty Desk, as well as best-practice XLVIII and the visit of Pope Francis to Philadelphia. Most recently, he served as
security resources and support related to physical security, facility assessments, a supervisor in the Joint Terrorism Task Force squad and the Crisis Management
life-saving training, critical policies and incident response.

program in Philadelphia.

The Philadelphia security program was made possible through professional
Among his extensive experience, Kerns served in the Marine Corps from 1992
support from the Jewish Federation and SCN, funding from collaborative efforts to 1997, attaining the rank of captain.

of the Jewish Federation and other local donors, and national donor support
Kerns has been recognized with the FBI Medal of Excellence, the Federal
from SCN and LiveSecure. LiveSecure is the partnership between The Jewish Law Enforcement Foundation Investigator of the Year award and the Attorney
Federations of North America and SCN to fund and create a collective security General’s Award for Exceptional Service.

framework. “It’s an honor for me to continue working in Philadelphia and to contribute to
“SCN strives to ensure the safety, security, and resiliency of the Jewish people the safety and security of the Jewish community,” said Kerns, who holds a bach-
by creating a security shield over the Jewish community in North America,” said elor’s degree in accountancy from Villanova University and a master’s degree
SCN National Director and CEO Michael Masters. “The heart of this effort is the in telecommunications management from the Stevens Institute of Technology.

establishment of a comprehensive security program in each Jewish population “I look forward to leveraging my professional experience and community rela-
center, led by a full-time security professional. We are honored to partner with tionships to help everyone become more prepared and resilient against all forms
the Federation and thrilled that in Scott we have a seasoned professional to lead of threat.”
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