Cliff Everton

Public Safety

• Emergency Management
• Risk Management & Insurance
• William & Mary Police

About Cliff

Clifton J. Everton, III is the Associate Vice President for the Division of Public Safety at William & Mary. He assumed the role in June 2025 after serving over 25 years as a special agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). As the AVP for Public Safety at William & Mary, Everton is the senior safety and security official for the university. The role elevates and connects various aspects of public safety across the university — including the W&M Police Department, Emergency Management, Risk Management and Threat Assessment — to create a more comprehensive approach to the evolving security needs of a modern university campus. He is responsible for developing, planning, and leading a public safety organization that works in tandem with groups across campus.

Everton collaborates with Student Affairs in campus wide efforts to prevent and respond to student mental health crises, acts of sexual violence and other concerns. Everton’s other responsibilities include chairing multiple committees updating university leadership on new requirements and trends in safety and security and serving as principal advisor to senior management on policy and program matters related to campus security. Everton also works daily to strengthen relationships between public safety at William & Mary and the local community.

A graduate of the Executive Leaders Program at the Center for Homeland Defense and Security at the Naval Postgraduate School, he discovered his passion for building connections across police, fire and emergency management departments. Everton has over 25 years of experience in law enforcement, including more than 18 years in leadership at NCIS, the civilian Federal law enforcement agency responsible for the US Navy and Marine Corps. He served worldwide in assignments across the United States, Europe, the Far East and Middle East. He was appointed to the Senior Executive Service at NCIS in 2022. He provided values-based leadership and mentorship for agents conducting investigations of violent and sexual crimes along with counterintelligence matters. He was instrumental in developing campaigns focused on insider threat and sexual assault awareness and managed a proactive suicide intervention program. He also championed innovation through integrating technology to further mission success.

He earned a Master of Arts degree in Security Management from Webster University; a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from William & Mary; and an Executive Certificate in Leadership Coaching from Georgetown University.