I’m not ashamed to say that I have gotten to where I am through a variety of factors: skill, hard work, and some dumb luck. Born and raised just outside of Detroit, Michigan, I was fortunate to have a family that supported me while still instilling that midwest “hard work” attitude (and a propensity to still call it “pop” even after moving to the mid Atlantic).
Attending Central Michigan University from 2003-2008, I originally intended to pursue a degree in Meteorology – fueled in part by the movie Twister and a desire to chase severe weather. After a few semesters of struggling through Calculus, I transitioned over to a degree in Geographic Information Science – studying geographic information systems, cartography, and remote sensing of the environment. However, I was still engaged and interested in meteorology, and as a member of the Student Chapter of the American Meteorological Society, had an opportunity to hear a presentation from our county Emergency Manager.
That presentation set off a whirlwind of thoughts and experiences I am still riding to this day. After that presentation, I approached the speaker and quickly secured an internship with the county emergency management office. The internship lead to a part time job as a planner (and a further diminishing of my GPA as I spent more time in the EOC than I did in the classroom – but gained tremendous real-world experiences). I was able to get my feet wet in a wide range of projects: helping run the LEPC program, helping develop the county’s first CERT program, and responding to county level emergencies. I also assisted in my first (of many) public health projects, in helping to develop a multi-county emergency management/public health collaborative pandemic influenza exercise.
After receiving my BS, I was fortunate enough to “know a guy who knows a guy” who worked for the City of Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion’s Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness. With the comment of “well, that’s kind of like emergency management, right?” I jumped in and quickly started as an Emergency Preparedness Planner in Detroit.
Over the next 7 years in Detroit, I was able to build another wide range of skill sets while holding a number of positions, including training and exercise planner and Strategic National Stockpile planner before moving into management, first as the Assistant Manager and then finally holding the post of Manager of OPHEP for 3 years. During this time, I also pursued my Master of Science in Technology Studies (Public Safety and Emergency Management) from Eastern Michigan University. And yes, you can now make a joke about the university naming conventions in Michigan…
After 7 years in Detroit, it was time to move on, and since April 2015 I have been proud to lead the emergency preparedness and response functions for the Pennsylvania Department of Health as director of the Bureau of Public Health Preparedness. This has been a tremendous experience, and has allowed me to touch the worlds of public health, healthcare, and emergency management at both the policy and operational levels.
Outside of my professional life, I’m a lifelong nerd. I play euphonium (it’s like a small tuba) in a local concert band in the Harrisburg area. I am also highly involved in the Destination Imagination program, which offers a competitive creative problem solving program for kids in kindergarten through college – having participated in elementary school and have been volunteering in the program since college. I also enjoy reading (when I have the time), and just sitting on the couch watching bad TV with my cat, Merlin.
AP Prepares 