Michael Masters

Michael Masters serves as the National Director and CEO of the Secure Community Network (SCN), a role in which he is responsible for the overall leadership, operations, and growth of the official safety and security organization for the Jewish community in North America.

Mr. Masters has served on numerous task forces for the Department of Homeland Security, to include as a current appointee of the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security to the federal Homeland Security Advisory Council and Faith-Based Advisory Council, the only individual in the country to hold appointments to both councils. He also serves as a member of the Executive Board of the FBI’s Chicago Joint Terrorism Task Force.

Mr. Masters serves as a member of the board of directors of the Chicago Police Foundation, on the council of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, and on the Advisory Board of the University of Chicago’s Policing Leadership Academy.

Prior to joining SCN, Mr. Masters previously served as the Senior Vice President of The Soufan Group, a strategic international security consultancy firm and as the CEO of CivicScape, an advanced predictive analytics company. Mr. Masters previously served as executive director of the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management for Cook County, Ill., as the Chief of Staff for the Chicago Police Department and as an assistant to the former mayor of the City of Chicago, the Honorable Richard M. Daley. Mr. Masters received a commission as an officer in the United States Marine Corps, where he attained the rank of captain.

He previously served on the board of trustees of the Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School in Chicago and on the board of directors of The Soufan Center, a non-profit organization dedicated to addressing global security issues. He has held faculty appointments at the John Marshall School of Law and Northeastern University. Certified as a peace officer and a Special Weapons and Tactics operator, Mr. Masters has served as a part-time police officer for over ten years.

A Harry S. Truman Scholar and a Gates Cambridge Trust Scholar, Mr. Masters holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan, a master’s degree in international relations from the University of Cambridge, and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School, where he served as managing editor for the Harvard International Law Journal.

Mr. Masters is a recognized expert on issues related to homeland and national security, terrorism, law enforcement, antisemitism, and targeted violence, and has testified, served as a witness, expert panelist, and appeared as a guest speaker before the U.S. Congress and interagency task forces as well as at international security forums, conferences, and summits, both in the United States and abroad. He is featured regularly on television and in newspaper articles. He has appeared on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, as well as the BBC, and has been interviewed by The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Washington Times, NPR, and Frontline, among other major media outlets.