Guilford County has run through quite a few Security Department directors in recent years, and that trend is now continuing with the departure of Guilford County Security Director Amanda Vutsinas, who’s leaving the county less than a year after she took the job.

One source said that Vutsinas had taken a job in Utah.

For 21 years, from March 1999 to March 2020, former Guilford County Security Director Jeff Fowler (third from left in picture above taken as the commissioners wished him farewell) served as the head of security for the county.  Back then, the department was much smaller and, at times, Fowler was the only security at Guilford County commissioners meetings at the Old Guilford County Court House in downtown Greensboro.

These days, everyone who doesn’t have a county ID badge passes through a metal detector and then goes up to the second floor to find both the foyer and meeting room lined with armed security officers.

Now, In some cases, there may be a dozen or so officers protecting the meetings.

Vutsinas took the job in late November of 2022 that entails protecting county buildings, employees and commissioners.  That happened after a long search for a new director, and she had more than 16 years’ experience in the security field, where she specialized in “investigations, threat management, intelligence analysis, and workplace and domestic violence prevention.”

Vutsinas had also earned a Master of Public Administration Degree with a concentration in Public Leadership and Management, as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Forensics and Criminal Justice Studies from Florida Gulf Coast University.

Vutsinas worked in both the private and public sector and in a broad range of security jobs including corrections and energy security. Most recently, before taking the job with Guilford County, she served as the safety and security program manager for GuideWell – a large, Florida-based health solutions company.

The Guilford County Security Department was formed in 1987 and there were only two directors before Fowler. So, from 1987 to 2020, over a 33-year period – there were only three security directors for the county.

Vutsinas’ last day with Guilford County was Friday, July 28.

It’s not clear why the county is having so much trouble finding a suitable director who will stick around.

One security professional very familiar with Guilford County’s Security Department asked not to be identified but said he hopes the county’s hiring body in the new process has a good knowledge of the career field.

“They should stress long term commitment with any serious candidates,” he said.  “A combination of military and law enforcement experience would be a plus.”

 

 

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