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FCPS posts $140K bodyguard job to protect superintendent amid rising threats

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Published  August 4, 2025 4:20pm EDT
Fairfax County
FOX 5 DC
FCPS posts job for superintendent bodyguard

FCPS posts job for superintendent bodyguard

Fairfax County Public Schools is hiring for security for their superintendent.

The Brief

    • FCPS has posted a job for an executive protection agent to guard Superintendent Michelle Reid, with a salary between $80K–$140K, sparking criticism over taxpayer spending.
    • The school system cites rising threats to public officials, while critics note larger districts like Chicago do not provide similar security for leadership.
    • The move comes amid intense national scrutiny of FCPS, including federal investigations into Title IX and Title VI violations.

FAIRFAX, Va. - Fairfax County Public Schools posted a job opening for an executive protection agent tasked with ensuring the personal safety and security of FCPS Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid.

The posted salary ranges from around $80,000 to upwards of $140,000. Taxpayers will foot the bill.

In context, a new teacher's starting salary is about $58,000 in FCPS.

Fairfax Superintendent hiring for personal bodyguard

Fairfax Superintendent hiring for personal bodyguard

Taxpayers are "up in arms" over Fairfax County Public Schools hiring for a bodyguard due to what FCPS says are "unprecedented times."

Big picture view:

FCPS has recently come under intense national public scrutiny.

Just two weeks ago, the U.S. Department of Education found FCPS, alongside four Northern Virginia school districts, in violation of Title IX because of their policies related to transgender students.

Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex.

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares referred FCPS to DOJ and DOE for discrimination against Asian American students in violation of Title VI, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race.

DOE’s Office of Civil Rights opened an investigation in May.

What they're saying:

The school system says the new security position is necessary amid rising threats to public officials.

In a statement to FOX 5, a spokesperson for FCPS says:

"The highly publicized tragic events around the country over the last several months illustrate the need to intensify and enhance security protocols at all organizations."

Security experts say it’s not just the public official who becomes the target.

"Individuals who are fixated on pursuing and carrying out a grievance don't always just focus on the target, the public official," says John Muffler, a security expert and former U.S. Marshal responsible for judicial security. "In many cases, they'll take it out on a family member. So it's not just about them. It's about their environment and that's loved ones."

Some parents are angry about spending taxpayer money on personal security, according to FOX News' Asra Nomani.

They point to larger school districts like Chicago — which serves nearly twice as many students as FCPS — where school board leadership does not have a security detail.

Notably, there was a similar debate over adding a security detail for Betsy DeVos, the Secretary of Education during President Donald Trump's first term.
DeVos was receiving death threats, and the U.S. Marshals eventually provided her with a security detail.

Dig deeper:

TorchStone Global tracks monthly security threats to executives, celebrities, and public servants.

In February 2025, they noted 16 threats to community, local, and state government officials.

TorchStone says for the first time since they began this monthly report, state and regional government officials were the most targeted group of the month.

They say there is no single dynamic that explains the rise in threats to local officials.

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