You are cordially invited to attend
the CREATE Distinguished Speaker Series
in Washington D.C.
presenting
Matthew R. Bettenhausen
Vice President of Security and Chief Security Officer for AEG Worldwide
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012
Lecture – 4:00 – 5:30 p.m.
CREATE Reception – 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Headquarters
1615 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20062
Lecture Title:
“2012 London Olympics –
Large Event Safety, Security and Counter-terrorism"
Biography: Matthew R. Bettenhausen is the Vice President of Security and Chief Security Officer for AEG Worldwide. AEG is one of the leading sports and entertainment presenters in the world. They own or manage over 120 sports and entertainment venues such as STAPLES Center and the LA Live entertainment district in Los Angeles and the O2 arena and entertainment district in London, England. They own sports franchises in professional basketball, hockey, and soccer. AEG LIVE is the second largest promoter of concerts, live tours and special events in the United States. Matt has overall responsibility for security, public safety and preparedness for AEG’s domestic and global operations and facilities.
Matt is currently a member of the Chief Security Officer Roundtable, Overseas Security Advisory Council, Domestic Security Advisory Council, a Board Member of the National Disaster Resiliency Center and is a graduate of the FBI Citizen Academy, among other safety and security organizations.
Previously, Matt was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to lead California’s homeland security and emergency management operations as the Secretary of the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA). Matt was a member of Governor Schwarzenegger’s cabinet for nearly six years and served as the Chairman of the Governor’s Emergency Council.
He has held a number of senior leadership positions with many national and state organizations, such as the National Homeland Security Consortium, National Governors Association’s Homeland Security Advisors Council and National Emergency Managers Association. He is a board member of the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security and serves on the external advisory board to Sandia National Laboratory.
Prior to his appointment in California, Matt served as the first Director of State and Territorial Coordination with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), where he was the Department’s representative to the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and was a member of both the Department’s Emergency Response Group and its Interagency Incident Management Team.
From January 2000 to January 2003, Matt served as the Deputy Governor of Illinois and its Homeland Security Director. As Deputy Governor, Matt was responsible for coordinating the law enforcement and public safety functions and agencies of the State of Illinois. The agencies reporting to him included, among others: the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, Illinois State Police, Department of Corrections, State Fire Marshal’s Office, Department of Nuclear Safety and the Department of Military Affairs.
For over twelve years Matt was a federal prosecutor for the U.S. Department of Justice. He investigated and prosecuted all manner of federal offenses from drug cases to complex financial fraud matters and long-term undercover investigations. He also worked on a number of terrorism cases and civil rights investigations. For most of his prosecutorial career he held supervisory positions with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago, including Chief of Appeals and Associate Chief of the entire Criminal Division. Matt graduated summa cum laude from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in Accountancy and continued his education at the University’s law school where he earned his J.D. degree with honors. He was recently privileged to receive the Patrick Henry Award from the National Guard Association of the United States.
Matt’s family has a long and extensive history in the fire service and law enforcement. His father has spent more than 50 years in the fire service and recently retired as the Fire Marshal for Tinley Park, Illinois. His brother is an officer with the Lemont Fire Protection District.
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Established in 2004, CREATE is an interdisciplinary national research center based at the University of Southern California and funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The DHS Center of Excellence is focused on risk and economic analysis and comprises a team of experts from across the country, including partnerships with numerous universities and research institutions.