Frank Quiambao | Founding Director
Frank Quiambao is the Founding Director of the National Education Safety and Security Initiative (NESSI) in the Fielding School of Public Health at UCLA. Frank has spent 35 years in higher education. He has held numerous faculty and administrative positions with the California State University and Community Colleges. While in higher education, he worked extensively with education and training programs for law enforcement, fire technology and emergency medical services. He was appointed by the State Chancellor to chair the California Community Colleges Homeland Security Task Force. During his career he served as president of two colleges.
Prior to his assignment at UCLA, Frank served as the Director of the Safe Communities Institute, formerly DCI, in the Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California.
From 2005 to 2014 Frank served in homeland security at the state and federal level. First, in the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal EMA), formerly the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security. In this capacity he worked in the area of critical infrastructure protection and countering violent extremism. He also developed partnerships with business, educational institutions and faith-based communities to promote emergency preparedness. More recently he was assigned as a DHS loaned executive attached to the U.S. Secret Service focusing on school security. Frank holds a doctorate in education from Nova Southeastern University.
Email: fquiambao@ucla.edu
Bryan "Scorpio" Astrachan | NESSI Presenter
Bryan Astrachan is the Coordinator of the National Education Safety and Security Initiative (NESSI) in the Fielding School of Public Health at UCLA. Bryan has spent several years in education including K-12, college and university. He is a leading expert in the arena of safe schools, school administration, school law, and juvenile procedures. He has held numerous posts dealing with administration, discipline, Child Welfare Attendance (CWA), and school safety, in addition to being primary school safety trainer including partnership development with school districts and the County Office of Education. Bryan's unique experience with law enforcement, military, and educational administration allows him to deliver instruction on a multiple levels, from executives to the "Boots On The Ground" teams.
Bryan is also the NESSI Governmental Affairs Representative who works closely with California Department of Education (CDE), Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), and law enforcement partners. Bryan is a POST certified academy instructor and our Terrorism Liason Officer (TLO) Coordinator with the Joint Regional Intelligence Center (JRIC), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Bryan provides contract services to school districts, county office of education and charter schools; services include background investigations, uniform complaint investigations, employer/employee relations, and internal affairs investigations.
Email: bryan.astrachan@ucla.edu
Jill Barnes | NESSI Presenter
Dr. Barnes is the Executive Emergency Strategist for the Los Angeles Unified School District, providing emergency management for the district. She advises schools on emergency procedures, writes guidance documents, oversees emergency-related training, manages the Emergency Operations Center, and acts as a liaison to government and community agencies during emergencies. She is also a consultant to federal agencies, including the US Department of Education, FEMA, and the Unites States Geological Survey. Dr. Barnes is a former Police Officer with the Los Angeles Police Department and a former Public Information Officer for the Santa Monica Fire Department. She has also worked as a middle school teacher, Coordinator, and Dean of Student Discipline in LAUSD – along with various other roles and responsibilities. She is currently working on her fifth university degree.
Dr. Tony Beliz | NESSI Presenter
Dr. Tony Beliz is a licensed clinical and forensic psychologist who trains and lectures nationally and internationally on Behavioral Threat Assessment, Emerging Trends in Targeted Violence, Interviewing Strategies, and Trauma Event Management.
Dr. Beliz is a consultant to private and public educational institutions, security firms, and global corporations on risk assessment, risk management, and special circumstances. He trains educators, mental health providers, law enforcement, and threat management teams on violence threat risk assessment and has been featured on HBO, CNN, CBS, New York Times, and local media. As the former Deputy Director, Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health Emergency Outreach Bureau, Dr. Beliz developed and supervised the Los Angeles County School Threat Assessment Response Team (START), Special Prevention Unit (SPU), and other field based units.
Dr. Beliz is an Instructor, University of Southern California Sol Price School of Public Policy, Safe Communities Initiative focused on countering violent extremism. He serves as Expert Witness for the Los Angeles County Superior Court and State of California Board of Psychology. He is a Diplomate in the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress and American College of Forensic Examiners.
Andrew Carlson | NESSI Presenter
Andrew Carlson is a ASIS Certified Protection Professional and a Certified Business Continuity Professional through Disaster Recovery Institute International. In his current role he conducts security vulnerability assessments on request in support of first responder agencies in the greater Los Angeles area.
Ray Casillas | NESSI Presenter
Ray Casillas is a first responder with over three decades of operational experience, working as firefighter/paramedic. For 22 years, he has been collaterally assigned to his city’s SWAT team as the Senior Tactical EMS (TEMS) Specialist.
As a contemporary, he has pioneered many first responder best practices, policies and training programs in existence today. Examples include, comprehensive interdisciplinary response to active shooter, Tactical (Fire/EMS & Police) Unified Command and Control, and all levels of Tactical EMS (TEMS) training and education, which are used to train physicians, nurses, firefighters, police officers, paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT). Some of these courses are approved by state governing bodies. He was one of the first in the nation to call for and translated the revered military Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) curriculuum into a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) approved civilian training model for allied responders.
Adding to Ray’s credentials, he was recently interviewed for a “Special Talk” by the esteemed peer reviewed journal, the Journal of Special Operations Medicine (JSOM). He has presented on similar related topics at a National DHS Conference, several California Fire Chiefs’ conferences and has consulted numerous senior executives across the country regarding first responder interoperability and school safety and security.
Academically, Ray has attended numerous discipline specific trade schools. He holds an undergraduate degree in Fire Science and is pursuing a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree. Ray has attended the University of Southern California’s (USC) Sol Price School of Public Safety Leadership program and is in the process of completing their Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE) course as well.
Deborah Tull | NESSI Presenter
Dr. Deborah Tull has had a 38-year history with the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) serving in numerous roles including counselor, instructor and administrator. She has a doctorate in Clinical Psychology and a Master of Science Degree in Rehabilitation and Community College Counseling. She has worked collaboratively with law enforcement entities on violence prevention training within the Los Angeles area for the past fifteen years. She has served as an instructor for USC’s Safe Communities Institute for the past three years and is currently serving as an instructor for USC’s LAPD Lead Program.
Areas of professional accomplishment have been recognized with numerous state and local awards and include programs for students with disabilities, sexual assault and domestic violence prevention, and college student mental health. Her community leadership efforts include service on advisory committees with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health to develop collaborative college programs which support individuals with mental health challenges, Third Party Assessor for the State of California to mediate conflict between the Welfare Department and welfare recipients, and the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office to conduct research on adolescent suicide prevention. Additionally, she has a long history serving as a Technical Assistance Expert for colleges, agencies and professional organizations needing training on mental health related issues (Mental Health 101, Suicide Prevention, Stigma and Discrimination Reduction, Achieving Success through Successful Community Collaboration, Development of Cost-Effective, and Student Friendly On-campus Mental Health Programs).
She is currently serving as the Executive Director of VentionWorks, LLC which offers colleges, communities and businesses mental health prevention, intervention, and postvention training and program development opportunities. Most recently, she has served as a lead researcher on two National Council on Disability Projects which are nationwide in scope: (1) College and University Student Mental Health Services and Supports Project and (2) A Federal Project targeting sexual assault services and supports for students with disabilities. Data from the Projects are being used to inform the President of the United States and Congress along with other government entities and colleges and universities across the United States. She is also currently serving as a member of the Los Angeles Superior Court Mental Health Think Tank.
Opal Singleton Hendershot | Nessi Presenter
Opal Singleton Hendershot is the President and CEO of Million Kids, a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to keeping kids safe from predators.
Million Kids serves as the Advisor to the Training and Outreach Coordinator for the Riverside County Anti Human Trafficking Task Force (RCAHT) and works with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department through a Department of Justice Grant. Opal has completed tens of thousands of hours of research over the past ten years on those subjects and dealt with real cases making her an expert on human trafficking crimes and online social media exploitation of minors.
With her expertise, Opal has educated and trained more than 700,000 government and individual leaders as the keynote speaker and workshop presenter on labor trafficking, adult and child sex trafficking, foreign national trafficking, gang trafficking, advanced technologies used in sex crimes, sextortion and social media exploitation, crypto currency and money laundering, the Dark Net and bulletproof hosting, and CSAM (child sexual abuse materials). She often appears on television and radio talk shows across the United States.
Opal is the author of two books. Seduced: The Grooming of America’s Teenagers (2015) examines real cases to illustrate how predators use social media and online gaming to access, groom, recruit and exploit teenagers into sex trafficking, sextortion and exploitation. The second book, Societal Shift: A World Without Borders... A Home Without Walls (2019), takes a look at the impact of over six billion people coming together through 5G High Speed Internet creating a momentous societal shift. The book explores the technology transformation that changes crime and crime solving including artificial intelligence, mass audience live streaming, global digital currency, geo location software, and encryption.
Opal is a lecturer and subject matter expert for the National Education Safety and Security Initiative in UCLA’S Center for Public Health and Disasters. Opal has completed the Robert Presley Institute of Criminal Investigation Instructor Course and served on the Peace Officers Standardized Training panel to develop the training curriculum on human trafficking for law enforcement in California.
Opal hosts a radio show on KTIE 590 AM called “Exploited: Crimes and Technology” every Saturday at 3:00 PM throughout Southern California. She also presents a regular Million Kids Insider Alert video and post for her subscribers featuring breaking news and expert case analysis.
Simply stated: Opal cares deeply about the safety of young people and their families.
Julio Lima | NESSI Presenter
Dr. Julio Lima is a lecturer in the Criminology and Justice Studies Department, and the Master of Public Administration Program at California State University Northridge. He has taught graduate level classes in professional ethics as well as undergraduate classes in criminal justice ethics, criminological theories on race, diversity, and justice, as well as classes in law enforcement and policing.
Dr. Lima worked for 22 years in the Los Angeles School Police Department, the largest school police department in the United States, retiring as a Lieutenant Commanding Officer. He has experience as a Campus Officer, Patrol Officer, Sergeant, Watch Commander, and as an Administrative Lieutenant and Division Commanding Officer. In this capacity he worked closely with School District Administrators, teachers, students, and parents.
Dr. Lima has a strong commitment to enhancing student diversity, encouraging critical thinking, and motivating students towards a life-long commitment to both learning, and concerns about issues of society, ethics, and justice.
Academic Interests: Policing, to include Police Administration, Police Leadership, Police and Society, especially the intersection of Police, Community, Race, and Diversity. Professional Ethics and Leadership.
Research Interests: Police, Community, Diversity, Relations, Police Unions, and Survey Research and Methodology.
Dr. Lima is a retired Army National Guard Lieutenant Colonel Military Police branch, with deployments to Korea and Kosovo. He received his Ph.D. in Public Service Leadership from Capella University, an MA degree from the University of Washington, and a BA degree from Brown University.
Steve Zipperman | NESSI Presenter
Steve Zipperman has over 44-years of law enforcement and criminal justice experience with added emphasis and expertise in both the municipal sector and educational sector. He has executive, management, supervisory and field experience, with both the LAPD and the Los Angeles Unified School District Police, one of the largest school police departments in the nation.
During his time with the LAPD, he provided command oversight of numerous LAPD police divisions in many diverse areas of Los Angeles, major police supervisory leadership positions, and served in specialized units such as Internal Affairs, SWAT, K-9, vice, gangs, and partnered in juvenile intervention programs.
Mr. Zipperman has facilitated numerous leadership development classes for the LAPD and the Los Angeles City Fire Department, including presentations for command, supervisory, and officer-level attendees for the California POST-mandated courses per CA Penal Code 832.3 (f-h). Steve has facilitated various school safety and higher education mandated courses for administrators and teachers. He has been a guest speaker and presented break-out sessions at various school safety conferences and seminars locally and out-of-state.
During Mr. Zipperman’s career he had the distinct privilege of forging outstanding community partnerships with the diverse ethnic, religious and cultural populations of the City of Los Angeles. He has forged strong partnerships with local city council offices, deputy city attorney and social justice groups and served on the advisory committee for the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy - Safe Communities Institute.
Mr. Zipperman has a demonstrated record of 21st century policing and leadership, police field operations, supervision and special operations while espousing professional and constitutional policing and ethics, embracing community engagement, social and criminal justice reform.
Brian L. Keith | NESSI Presenter
Prior to serving as a PSA, Mr. Keith was appointed as Deputy Director for Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Office of Homeland Security (OHS). As Deputy Director for CIP, Mr. Keith was responsible for the development of California’s Critical Infrastructure Protection Program, as well as the
implementation of the state’s first Regional CIP Assessment Team utilizing the National Guard’s Full Spectrum Integrated Vulnerability Assessment (FSIVA) Methodology.
Mr. Keith has chaired the Los Angeles Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Working Group since August 2015. The Los Angeles UAS Working Group is a Consortium of Private Sector Companies, Public Safety Agencies,
and Academic Institutions who meet quarterly to discuss emerging UAS threats, lessons learned, and best practices. Mr. Keith is also an instructor on "Drone Technology"; with the University of Southern California (USC) Safe Communities Institute.
Mr. Keith earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Criminology from the University of Maryland and is a graduate of The Executive Program in Counter Terrorism from the University of Southern California (USC) as well a graduate of the Executive Program in Cyber Security from the University of San Diego (USD).
In 2020 and 2024, Mr. Keith was awarded “DHS Protective Security Advisor of The Year” by the FBI’s National InfraGard Program. In January of 2021 Mr. Keith was recognized for his contributions in homeland security and was the recipient of the 2020 “Mission Award” by Homeland Security Today (HSToday.us) Magazine. In 2023 Mr. Keith was recipient of the “Key Partnership Award” by the Los Angeles InfraGard Chapter.
