ABOUT
Our philosophy is to meet the needs of our clients in the most effective and efficient means possible.
We accomplish this by using our direct operational experience to work with our clients to:
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Identify client needs
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Implement a process to meet the needs
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Execute the process
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Together, our broad range of specialized career experiences and demonstrated commitment to leadership allow us to integrate best practices from diverse domains into a comprehensive, general approach.
Our experiences working with myriad agencies and in different operating environments/circumstances allow us to share an objective, big-picture perspective with the clients we serve.
MEET OUR PRINCIPALS
KAREN ALBERT, Ed.D.
President
Karen Albert has over 40 years of experience in adult, juvenile, and criminal justice administration and consulting. She is currently consulting for various local, state and federal agencies, particularly in areas of criminal justice planning, staffing, and operational assessments.
In her career with the Arlington, VA Sheriff’s Office, she held progressively responsible positions and retired as director of administration. As the transition team leader for the new Arlington jail, Ms. Albert oversaw Arlington County’s transition from a 164-bed linear facility housing more than 400 inmates, to a 509-bed direct supervision jail.
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Ms. Albert serves as a technical resource provider and instructor for the National Institution of Corrections in the areas of jail administration, facility planning and transition, resource management, staffing, and strategic inmate management. She also serves as a criminal justice expert witness, and a certified PREA auditor.
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Ms. Albert holds a Bachelor of Science degree from East Carolina University, a Master of Arts degree from Marymount University, and a doctorate in Education with a focus on Organizational Leadership. Ms. Albert is a graduate of LeadershipArlington, Leadership Greer, and Leadership South Carolina, and continues to support her community.
SHAWN S. KELLEY
Principal
Mr. Kelley has over 44 years of experience in the first responder community.
Mr. Kelley is a 28-year veteran of the Arlington County, VA Fire Department. He retired in 2006 as an Assistant Fire Chief, Chief Fire Marshal, and certified law enforcement officer. In his last 20 months, he was also the Chief Building Official, managing a division of 50 employees and 1.2 billion in valuated construction annually. Mr. Kelley was a nationally registered EMT paramedic for 18 years and the founder of the department’s Technical Rescue Team. He was the County’s first certified fire protection specialist and certified fire and explosives investigator. In his last six years, he was also a certified bomb technician and commander of the Department’s bomb squad, which was responsible for such buildings as Reagan National Airport, The Pentagon, the CIA and the National Foreign Affairs Training Center.
As the chairman of the Emergency Services Sector Coordinating Council for Infrastructure Protection for DHS, Mr. Kelley represented 3.2 million first responders nationwide. One of their core missions is safe response to bombing and active shooter incidents.
Mr. Kelley was one of the two key incident commanders on the scene at the Pentagon on 9-11 and throughout the event. He later testified before the 9-11 Commission in New York City regarding Arlington County’s response efforts on April 1, 2002; and he has presented at hundreds of meetings and conferences regarding this event.