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Keynote Speakers

Laura W. Bush

One of the most beloved and admired American First Ladies, for decades Laura Bush has championed key issues in the fields of education, health care, and human rights. She has traveled to more than seventy-six countries, including two historic solo trips to Afghanistan, and has launched groundbreaking education and healthcare programs in the U.S. and abroad. Mrs. Bush founded both the Texas Book Festival and the National Book. Today, through the initiatives at the Bush Institute in Dallas, Mrs. Bush continues her work on global healthcare innovations, empowering women in emerging democracies, education reform, and supporting the men and women who have served in America’s military.

 

Speaking at:
• Keynote: A Conversation with Laura Bush and Barbara Pierce Bush

Laura-W-Bush
Laura Bush

Former First Lady
of the United States

Barbara Pierce Bush

Barbara Bush is co-founder and board member of Global Health Corps (GHC), an organization that mobilizes young leaders to solve the world’s most pressing health issues. Barbara served as GHC’s CEO for its first 9 years. Bush and her co-founders are united by the belief that health is a human right and that their generation must build the world where this is realized. Since 2009, GHC has placed thousands of young leaders on the front lines of health equity in East Africa, Southern Africa, and the United States, developing a cadre of creative, effective, and compassionate change makers.

 

Speaking at:
• Keynote: A Conversation with Laura Bush and Barbara Pierce Bush

Barbara-Pierce-Bush
Barbara Pierce Bush

Co-founder and Board Member
Global Health Corps (GHC)

Gray Hall, Chief Executive Officer
Raptor Technologies

Gray manages Raptor’s vision, growth, products, and services. His career spans 20+ years of driving growth at cutting-edge technology companies in the SaaS and IT industries, including nine years as CEO of Alert Logic and eight years as co-founder and CEO of VeriCenter. Alert Logic and VeriCenter were fast-growing market leaders pioneering new cybersecurity and IT infrastructure business models. Both companies achieved successful outcomes for all stakeholders during his leadership.

 

Gray has a Master in Business Administration from Texas McCombs School of Business and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Southern Methodist University, Cox School of Business.

 

Speaking at:
• Welcome and Opening Remarks

Gray Hall, CEO, Raptor Technologies
Gray Hall

Chief Executive Officer
Raptor Technologies

Marisa Randazzo, Executive Director of Threat Assessment, Raptor Technologies

Dr. Marisa Randazzo, Ph.D. is the Executive Director for Threat Assessment at Raptor Technologies and brings extensive expertise and experience in threat assessment, threat management, school shootings, and other types of targeted violence and protective intelligence investigations. Previously, she co-founded and led SIGMA Threat Management Associates LLC and served as Executive Director of Threat Management at Ontic. Dr. Randazzo also served for ten years with the U.S. Secret Service, eventually as the agency's Chief Research Psychologist where she co-directed the Safe School Initiative and co-developed the NTAC model, also known as the “federal model” for school threat assessment. Dr. Randazzo is a recognized author of four influential books on threat assessment in educational settings, widely referenced in federal guides and national standards. She holds a Ph.D. and Master's degree from Princeton University and a B.A. from Williams College in Psychology and Religion. 

 

Speaking at:
• Keynote Speaker: Marisa Randazzo - The Future of BTA Panel Discussion

Marisa Randazzo
Dr. Marisa Randazzo

Executive Director of Threat Assessment Raptor Technologies

Event Speakers

Ben Fernandez, School Psychologist/Crisis Intervention Specialist Safe and Sound Schools

Benjamin S. Fernandez, MS. Ed, is a lead school psychologist in Northern Virginia with 23 years of experience. He oversees psychological and mental health services, coordinates crisis teams, and implements crisis interventions. As a PREPaRE WS1 and WS2 master trainer, he trains school psychologists, interns, social workers, and counselors.

Mr. Fernandez has contributed to presentations, articles, books, and webinars on youth suicide and school safety. He conducts workshops on school safety and crisis response and has testified before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and the Federal Commission on School Safety.

He was named School Psychologist of the Year by both the Virginia Academy of School Psychologists and the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). He received the NASP Presidential Award in 2015 and 2018 and leads professional development for NASP's School Safety and Crisis Response Committee.

Ben Fernandez
Ben Fernandez

School Psychologist/Crisis Intervention Specialist
Safe and Sound Schools

Michele Gay, Founder & Executive Director
Safe and Sound Schools

Michele Gay, mother, educator, and co-founder of Safe and Sound Schools, became an advocate for school safety after losing her daughter Josephine in the Sandy Hook tragedy on December 14, 2012. With a Bachelor's in Elementary Education from Towson State University and a Master's in Curriculum and Instruction from McDaniel College, she previously taught in Maryland and Virginia public schools.

Now a recognized public speaker and school safety expert, Gay consults with schools, municipalities, law enforcement, and government agencies. She is the primary visionary behind Safe and Sound's programs and materials, contributing to national legislative discussions and media outlets. Gay's work emphasizes a comprehensive approach to community safety, uniting stakeholders across disciplines.

Inspired by her daughter, Gay dedicates herself to enhancing safety in schools and communities, ensuring they are truly safe and sound.

MICHELLE-GAY
Michelle Gay

Founder & Executive Director
Safe & Sound Schools

Molly Bradley Hudgens, School Counselor at Cheatham County School District

Molly Bradley Hudgens is a 1998 and 2000 graduate of Western Kentucky University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Allied Language Arts and a Master of Arts in Education degree in Counseling. She is currently completing her twenty-sixth year as an educator in the Cheatham County School System, where she serves as a school counselor at Sycamore Middle School in Pleasant View, Tennessee. In addition to her counseling role, Mrs. Hudgens serves on the school's Crisis Management and Leadership Teams and sponsors the Jr. Beta Society.

During her tenure in education, Hudgens has served as president of the Alpha Chi chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International and is an active member of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi. She was also the writer of an NFL Play 60 Super School Grant for Sycamore Middle School.

Following a personal experience in college, her interest in violence prevention and school safety inspired her to educate others who work with potentially violent teenagers. Her nationally recognized training, Recognizing Red Flags, has been used to educate professionals in education, law enforcement, juvenile probation, and juvenile court. The program focuses on understanding the three types of school shooters and using threat assessment tools to intervene before violence occurs in schools and communities.

Mrs. Hudgens put that training into practice on September 28, 2016, when she successfully talked a student with a loaded handgun out of committing a mass shooting at Sycamore Middle School. For her actions, she received the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation's Citizens Honor for a Single Act of Heroism in 2017. She is also the recipient of the Tennessee School Counseling Association's Phoebe White Award for Excellence in School Counseling and the Mental Health of the Mid-South I.C. Hope Award for advancing mental health awareness in schools.

Hudgens has received multiple state recognitions for her heroic actions, including honors from the Tennessee House of Representatives and Tennessee State Senate. She has also been nominated for the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission and the American Hero Channel's Red Bandanna Hero Award and was inducted into the Cheatham County Arts and Entertainment Hall of Fame in 2023.

She is a member of the Professional Educators of Tennessee, the Tennessee School Counseling Association, and the American School Counseling Association. She also serves as treasurer and choir member at Friendship Church. As Tennessee's first Congressional Medal of Honor Citizens Honor recipient, her story is featured at the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center in Chattanooga, where she also serves on the Advisory Board.

Mrs. Hudgens is the owner of Molly B. Hudgens Communications and is an internationally recognized motivational speaker and violence prevention specialist. Her book, Saving Sycamore: The School Shooting That Never Happened, published in 2020 by Dave Burgess Consulting, chronicles the events of September 28, 2016. She is also a speaker for Safe and Sound Schools through Kirkland Productions.

Molly resides in Ashland City, Tennessee, with her husband, Jason, and their sons, Bradley and Henry, on the family's farm.

molly-h
Molly Bradley Hudgens

School Counselor, Cheatham County School District

Doug Hunt, Associate Director, Bright Futures

Doug Hunt serves as the Associate Director of Bright Futures, bringing a powerful blend of lived experience, entrepreneurial leadership, and unwavering hope to his work. A survivor of a traumatic childhood marked by physical and psychological abuse, Doug's journey is defined by perseverance and a refusal to give up—even in his darkest moments.

After enduring profound personal and professional loss following the 2011 Joplin tornado, he launched a consulting practice focused on business coaching and personal development, earning national recognition for his message of resilience.

Rooted in gratitude, attitude, and purpose, Doug's presentations inspire audiences to transform adversity into action. With a pay-it-forward mindset, he equips students, leaders, and communities with practical tools to build hope, cultivate resilience, and pursue lives of meaning and impact.

Doug-Hunt
Doug Hunt

Associate Director
Bright Futures

Katey McPherson, Digital Wellness Coach

Katey McPherson is a digital wellness advocate and educator specializing in the intersection of student behavior, digital environments, and school safety. With more than 30 years of experience as a teacher, guidance counselor, school administrator, and educational consultant, she brings a multidisciplinary perspective to youth risk identification, digital behavior analysis, and school-based intervention strategies.

Recognizing gaps in traditional approaches to student wellness and safety, Katey developed a framework that integrates digital behavior patterns, mental health indicators, and school threat assessment practices.

She currently serves as Director of Community Outreach for a leading school safety app and has led community and statewide initiatives focused on youth suicide prevention, teen violence prevention, and mental health advocacy throughout Arizona.

Katey is the proud mother of four teenage daughters, a role she considers her most important.

Katey
Katey McPherson
Digital Wellness Coach

Dr. Kate Rahi, Associate Director of Projects & Training
Safe and Sound Schools

Dr. Kate Rahi is a Licensed Master Social Worker with a focus in violence prevention, behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM), and crisis response. With a career spanning education, law enforcement, and federal violence prevention initiatives, she has worked on the front lines of threat assessment in schools, served as a mental health clinician on a police co-responder team, and led strategic violence prevention efforts through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Dr. Rahi earned her Ph.D. in Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, with research focused on the implementation and effectiveness of K–12 threat assessment programs. She has designed and launched school-based BTAM programs, delivered cross-disciplinary training to professionals nationwide, and advised local, state, and federal leaders on evidence-based, sustainable approaches to targeted violence prevention.

She currently serves as Associate Director of Projects & Training at Safe and Sound Schools and manages the Averted School Violence Project.

Kate-Shaw

Dr. Kate Rahi

Associate Director of
Projects & Training
Safe and Sound Schools

Jasmine Stratton, Senior Director of Safety and Security for Noble Schools

Jasmine Stratton is an experienced safety and security leader with a strong background in strategic planning and crisis management within educational environments. A native of Memphis, Tennessee, and graduate of Christian Brothers University and DePaul University, she currently resides in Chicago, IL with her husband and two children.

For the past seven years, Jasmine has served as the Senior Director of Safety and Security for Noble Schools, the largest charter school network in Illinois. In this role, she is responsible for creating system-wide emergency response planning, inspecting school safety operations, and managing capital improvement projects with a focus on fiscal responsibility and long-term sustainability. Her work is grounded in aligning safety initiatives with the organization's values and community-centered mission.

Jasmine is also committed to ongoing professional development and continues to advance her expertise in incident command systems through the National Disaster and Emergency Management University. She is also preparing to earn the Certified Protection Professional (CPP) designation—a recognized credential that reflects advanced knowledge and competence in security management.

With a deep commitment to educational equity, organizational resilience, and student well-being, Jasmine Stratton brings a thoughtful, systems-level approach to safety leadership in complex urban school environments.

Jasmine Stratton
Jasmine Stratton

Senior Director of Safety and Security
Noble Schools

Ben Fernandez, School Psychologist/Crisis Intervention Specialist Safe and Sound Schools

Benjamin S. Fernandez, MS. Ed, is a lead school psychologist in Northern Virginia with 23 years of experience. He oversees psychological and mental health services, coordinates crisis teams, and implements crisis interventions. As a PREPaRE WS1 and WS2 master trainer, he trains school psychologists, interns, social workers, and counselors.

Mr. Fernandez has contributed to presentations, articles, books, and webinars on youth suicide and school safety. He conducts workshops on school safety and crisis response and has testified before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and the Federal Commission on School Safety.

He was named School Psychologist of the Year by both the Virginia Academy of School Psychologists and the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). He received the NASP Presidential Award in 2015 and 2018 and leads professional development for NASP's School Safety and Crisis Response Committee.

Katey
Ben Fernandez

School Psychologist/Crisis Intervention Specialist
Safe and Sound Schools

Speakers are subject to change.

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