Curtis J. Clay Sr.

Curtis Clay is the School Safety and Security administrator for the Hendry County School District. He left the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office as the Lieutenant supervising the criminal investigation and training divisions. He was also the SWAT team leader. He has a background as an adjunct instructor for the Florida Attorney General’s Office, specializing in the following areas of training: Juvenile Interview and Counseling, Family Dynamics, Substance Abuse, Crisis Identification and Intervention, Emergency Management for the School Resource Officer, Security on School Campuses, and Single-Person Response to an Active Assailant.

After graduating from LaBelle High School, Clay enlisted in the United States Navy, served his country, received an honorable discharge, and returned home to Hendry County to serve the citizens of this community. Clay is Florida dual certified in Corrections and Law Enforcement, with 28 years of experience in Law Enforcement. Clay has worked hard to prepare himself for his job duties and, in the process, obtained over five thousand (5,000) hours of advanced law enforcement training.

Clay has worked in training at some level for 24 years. He holds the Florida Department of Law Enforcement certifications as a general instructor and Firearms instructor. He has also been certified as a response to active threats instructor through the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. Clay was the lieutenant in charge of training and the criminal investigation units of the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office. He supervised all the Hendry County Sheriff’s training, including school safety and security training, firearms, defensive tactics, the Guardian program, and other agency training needs. Clay helped establish and teach Clewiston and LaBelle High School’s criminal justice programs. Clay’s interest in school safety and security and training drove him to pursue his education, culminating in a Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Emergency Management and a Master of Arts Degree majoring in Criminal Justice Management.

Clay oversees all school safety and security for the Hendry County School District. And has an extensive background in the school safety content area.