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Meet the Faculty for the MPA in Emergency and Disaster Management

Ali Gheith (MS in Social Science, Long Island University)

Ali Gheith is the director of the Emergency and Disaster Management master's degree program at Metropolitan College of New York in New York City. He joined Project Liberty, a New York-based support organization, immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. While there, Gheith provided outreach to union workers at ground zero, addressed the special needs of vulnerable populations and trained counselors on methods of providing culturally appropriate disaster mental health services to the diverse New York City communities.

Gheith conducted the first known research on the mental health needs of New York Muslims and the role of the imams in the day-to-day lives of American-Muslim communities while working as a senior research assistant at Columbia University. In early 2003, Gheith joined the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as a coordinator of Population Based Resilience. He responded to every major crisis in New York since 9/11. In 2010, he was assigned as regional coordinator for a citywide H1N1 vaccine campaign effort to inoculate New Yorkers.

Gheith has a Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) credential from the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM). He also has a certificate in advanced studies and research in international organizations from long Island University.

Gheith is the recipient of the NYC Distinguished Service Award for his work with community and faith leaders across New York City. He's also a visiting professor of emergency and disaster management at the Universidad Autonoma De Chile in Santiago, Chile, South America.

Christine Amy (MS in International Project Management, Humber College; MA in Higher Education Administration, Ohio State University)

Christine Amy is a US/Canadian citizen with over 20 years of non-profit experience, complemented by an additional 5 years of work in the the field of international disaster response. Currently she works as Manager of the International Programs Department at the IRC (International Rescue Committee), one of the largest Non-governmental organizations in the United States. Prior to 2011, she served as Executive Director of NYC Medics, a New York City-based humanitarian agency providing medical relief services during international emergencies. Her focus included developing funding and programmatic partnerships with corporations and NGOs, as well as developing disaster assessment and training programs for volunteers. Previously Ms. Amy gained extensive disaster experience while working with Habitat for Humanity International, where she established inter-agency mechanisms and systems to support disaster response programming. She also liaised with INGO's, UN agencies, and local partners, and led/supported the capacity building of staff and implementing partners at both country and field levels. Specific experiences included disaster assessments in Bangladesh, Lebanon, India, and Romania, with additional training experiences in Thailand, Costa Rica, and Hungary. Her latest field experience was as a Medical Team Coordinator for NYC Medics in Haiti in January, 2010. All of these duties were accomplished within a strong framework of building local capacity building and with a human rights-base approach.

This experience was preceded by work with Relief International, where Ms. Amy coordinated medical disaster response following the 2005 Pakistan earthquake, and through management of peace-building initiatives in post-tsunami Sri Lanka. Management of various aspects of the project cycle were included, as well as hands-on work in procurement, liaising with local CBO's and INGO's, grant writing/management, and evaluation.

Prior to her work in international development, Ms. Amy worked in various educational settings, including pediatric medical education, adult/higher education, and teaching and organizational training. She holds a post-graduate degree in International Project Management from Humber College in Canada, and an MA in Higher Education Administration from the Ohio State University.

Dr. Roberto Belmar (Guest Lecturer and EDM Program Advisor) robrblm@aol.com

Dr. Belmar is a pediatrician and medical school professor who served as health commissioner and director of public health emergency response to pandemic influenza for the city of Santiago, Chile. Following the most recent earthquake in Chile, Dr. Belmar was the Incident Commander responsible for restoring the public health systems in Chile. He started his teaching career in community medicine in Chile during the 1960s. Dr. Belmar helped lead the Chilean National Health Service, but his career was cut short when he was forced to flee Chile when the democratically elected president of Chile, was assassinated in a 1973 military coup. With the assistance of Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, Belmar and his family settled in New York and joined the Department of Social Medicine as deputy chair of social medicine. He became a key force in the development of the Community Health Participation Program, which trained local residents as community health workers.

Kim Burgo (Board Advisor, Guest Lecturer) kburgo@catholiccharitiesusa.org

Ms. Kim Burgo is currently Senior Director of the national Disaster Operations Office for Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA), one of the nation's largest social service networks. Based in Alexandria, Virginia, CCUSA, with over 170 member agencies, provides vital social services to more than 9 million people in need each year, regardless of religious, social or economic backgrounds. Under Ms. Burgo's leadership, the CCUSA Disaster Operations office, places emphasis on readiness and mitigation practices while supporting network agencies in their response to the local community. The Catholic Charities focus remains in the community for the life of the community; targeting efforts in early response and long term recovery including immediate information/referral services, community resource sites, mental health counseling, post disaster housing, and many other related disaster recovery programs.

In concert with her role at Catholic Charities USA, Ms. Burgo also serves on the Board of Directors for the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (NVOAD) and as a committee member of the Department of Homeland Security's National Faith-Based Initiative Council on Preparedness and Protection, under DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano. Prior to her position with Catholic Charities USA, Ms. Burgo's work focused on international disaster response. Beginning with the Ethiopia Famine in the early 1980s, her 28 years of disaster experience with organizations such as Catholic Relief Services and Save the Children Federation, provided the framework for involvement in natural, human-made, and complex disaster situations. Amongst her accomplishments, Ms. Burgo led US-based efforts during the 7 year recovery period of Hurricane Mitch in support of Central American countries. Through the creation of healthcare partnerships, in-kind donation systems, technical assistance, advocacy efforts, and the construction and installation of 50 structural bridges, Kim earned notable recognition throughout the countries of Honduras and Nicaragua for these efforts. Her knowledge in catastrophic disasters, combined with her understanding of US structures, led to a 4 month tour of duty during Hurricanes Katrina/Rita where she assisted local Catholic Charities agencies in Baton Rouge, New Orleans and throughout Louisiana with their immediate response, recovery programming, and long term strategic rebuilding efforts. Since joining Catholic Charities, her work has spanned more than 300 disasters throughout the US.

In addition to her disaster experience, Kim has traveled to over 25 countries throughout the world performing program assessments, addressing post-disaster needs, and participating in long term development efforts. She has led numerous bi-lingual (English/Spanish) strategic planning sessions concentrated on diverse cultures and populations, provided grass-roots organizing methodologies, structures and directions to a recovering post-Balkan war society, conducted workshops throughout the United States and internationally on the theme of "Global Solidarity," and addressed "Temporary Protective Status" advocacy related issues at the United Nations for a post-Hurricane Mitch recovery gathering.

Tom Carey (MS in Criminal Justice and Security Administration, Long Island University)

Adjunct Professor Carey is a combat veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom who obtained the rank of Sergeant Major in his 27 years of service. During his tour he served as both a committee member and advisor on security issues and operational issues for the Iraq Ministry of Defense complex in Baghdad, for Multi-National Force Iraq. He is also a twenty-three year (23) veteran of the New York City Police Department, serving in the capacity as the Course Manager for the Chief of Organized Crime's Training Unit prior to his retirement. He has obtained both professional and academic training through many organizations to include the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Secret Service, United States Army Sergeants Major Academy, The United States Army Military Police School's Special Reaction Team Course, NYPD Bomb Squad and Counter Terrorism Bureau. Carey also is a graduate of Long Island University at C.W. Post, where he received a Master of Science in Criminal Justice and Security Administration.

George W. Contreras (MS in Hospital Administration, Iona College; MPH in Community Health Education, Hunter College; PhD (candidate), Columbia University)

George Contreras is a healthcare professional with twenty years of combined experience in the fields of emergency medical services, public health, academia, hospital administration, emergency management and international humanitarian response. He currently serves as Director of Allied Health Sciences and Associate Professor at Kingsborough Community College (KCC) at The City University of New York. Since 2004, he is also Adjunct Professor at Metropolitan College of New York (MCNY) in the MPA Program in Emergency and Disaster Management.

Prof. Contreras holds faculty appointments at Universidad Tecnica de Manabi (in Ecuador) and Universidad Autonoma de Chile as a Visiting Professor of Emergency Management.

Over the past twenty years, Professor Contreras' strong interest in education and international humanitarian response has taken him to places such as Kenya, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Haiti, Chile and Ecuador. Professor Contreras is a frequent speaker at national and international conferences. He has authored and co-authored several articles, book chapters and manuals on topics such as emergency medical services, public health, and emergency management. He has a Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) credential from the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM).

Professor Contreras earned a Bachelor of Arts from New York University, a Master of Public Health in Community Health Education from Hunter College, and a Master of Science in Health Services Administration from Iona College. He is a certified FEMA instructor in Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP), weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and other emergency management courses. He is currently pursuing his Doctor of Public Health degree from The Graduate Center at The City University of New York. He stills works as a Paramedic in NYC.

Ken Curtin (Guest Lecturer and EDM Program Advisor) ken.curtin@dhs.gov

Mr. Curtin is the voluntary agency liaison for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Region II-New York/New Jersey. He has more than 38 years of experience in disaster and emergency human service. Curtin also has served on assignments in 24 states and 30 foreign countries. As such, he has held staff positions with International Rescue Committee as Program Officer for Easter Africa, Christian Children's Fund as Director of Emergency Programs, Catholic Relief Services as an international disaster and refugee program coordinator and three different times for American Red Cross Disaster Services in New York City. He has a wide range of human services experience in domestic and international disaster relief including wars, earthquakes, floods, refugee programs, urban disasters and famines.

Donald Decker (MSW, Fordham University)

Adjunct Professor Decker is a licensed clinical social worker and credentialed alcohol and substance abuse counselor with 27 years of experience as a clinician and administrator. For the past 8 years he has focused on mental health disaster preparedness and response. In 2001 he joined the federally funded Project Liberty program in NYC as a Senior Program Consultant Supervisor, where he provided technical assistance to numerous programs in the design and implementation of their outreach, crisis counseling and educational programs. In that capacity, he coordinated with a team of experts that planned and administered the city's mental health response to all 9/11 and flight 587 anniversaries and memorials. He served as the Hospital Coordinator at the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's were he coordinated training for all NYC hospital employees on mental health risk communication and reviewed all of New York City's hospital disaster plans .He currently serves as the Emergency Response Coordinator for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's; Office of Mental Health Disaster Preparedness and Response where he is responsible for developing systems and protocols for responding to the psychological sequelae of disasters and public health emergencies.

Hayley Figueroa (MPH in Community Health Education, Hunter College; DrPH (Candidate) CUNY School of Public Health, Graduate Center)

Adjunct Professor Figueroa is a public health practitioner and consultant with more than 20 years of professional experience working in government, community-based organizations, and health care facilities where she managed projects to expand primary care in New York City and improve health outcomes for women, immigrants, and HIV-positive people transitioning from city jails back into the community. She is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Public Health (DrPH) at the CUNY Graduate Center with a concentration in food studies.

Jack Finkelstein (BA, New York University; MPA, Emergency and Disaster Management, Metropolitan College of New York)

Adjunct Professor Finkelstein began his career in emergency management as the paramedic in 1981. He received the first and second highest awards, the Medal of Honor and the Life Saving medal. At present, he is the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator (EPC) for Wyckoff Heights Medical Center (WHMC) in New York. He has travelled to several countries including Montserrat, Tobago, Mexico, Guyana, and recently Chile where he is a visiting professor at the University Autonoma de Chile teaching medical courses and disaster preparedness. He has been featured in various periodicals and television reports, including his role during the 9-11 disaster.

Today he continues to work at WHMC in his various positions, is a Professor for MCNY and Kingsboro Community College, teaches EMT and Paramedic courses for the NYSDOH, and is a consultant in the fields of EMS and Emergency Preparedness.

Chuck Frank (MPA, Emergency and Disaster Management, Metropolitan College of New York)

Chuck Frank is currently Assistant Director of the Metropolitan College of New York MPA in Emergency and Disaster Management program. He is also an Adjunct Professor teaching Continuity of Operations Planning ,Private Sector Emergency Management, and Systematic Approach to Management.

Mr. Frank received his MPA in Emergency and Disaster Management from MCNY. He holds the Project Management Professional (PMP) designation from the Project Management Institute and certifications in Emergency Action Plan Direction, Continuity of Operations Planning, HAZUS, Enhanced Threat and Risk Assessment, and Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Planning.

Mr. Frank is also the Publisher of an Emergency Management web publication called www.theklaxon.com.

Mr. Frank is the Education Director for the New York Chapter of the Association of Contingency Planners (ACP), and has a broad background in business and has taught at Indiana University, Birmingham Southern College, and the University of California at Irvine.

Seth Golbey (Guest Lecturer and EDM Program Advisor) golbeys@nyredcross.org

Seth Golbey is Director of Planning and External Relations for the American Red Cross in Greater New York. His responsibilities include liaison with government agencies, NGOs, and CBOs in disaster planning and response. He was formerly a member of the preparedness staff at Red Cross national headquarters in Washington, DC, where he collaborated with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in developing public health emergency preparedness education strategies. He is a subject matter expert in government operations on the Red Cross's national disaster response team with which he has deployed regularly to large-scale disasters. Seth has participated in the development of numerous disaster response plans for New York City. He is secretary of NYC Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster.

Kay C. Goss (Guest Lecturer and EDM Program Advisor, CEM)

Kay is Senior Associate for Emergency Management and Homeland Security at Booz | Allen | Hamilton (BAH). She is an internationally recognized lecturer and author on emergency management and general resiliency. Prior to joining BAH, she served in numerous high-level positions, in the private sector as well as in both state and federal government agencies, including tours of duty as: Senior Principal and Senior Advisor for Emergency Management and Continuity Programs at SRA International; Senior Advisor for Emergency Management, Homeland Security, and Business Security at EDS; Associate FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) Director in charge of National Preparedness, Training, and Exercises; and Senior Assistant for Intergovernmental Relations to then Arkansas Governor William Jefferson Clinton. Kay was inducted into the International Network of Women in Emergency Management Hall of Fame in 2011.

Matthew Khaled (MPA, CEM)

Matthew Khaled is a Project Manager at the Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging of Hunter College. He is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the Adult Care Emergency Preparedness Program, which is funded by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Prior to that, he worked for the American Red Cross in Greater New York in several capacities. He was the first Senior Coordinator of Disaster Drills and Exercises, where he managed the day-to-day operations of an exercise program that included the planning, development and evaluation of nearly 30 disaster drills and exercises in a six-month period. In addition, Matthew Khaled worked out of the Brooklyn Area Office of the American Red Cross first as an AmeriCorps*VISTA and later as the first Preparedness Training Coordinator, where he coordinated nearly 300 Community Outreach and Preparedness Training events for the Red Cross that had attracted over 25,000 attendees in two years. Matthew still volunteers with the Red Cross; specifically as a member of the Brooklyn Disaster Action Team (DAT) and as an Exercise Activity Lead and Exercise Planner.

Mick Maurer (DMin, Chicago Theological Seminary, MHA, Baylor University)

Dr. Mick Maurer is the past Director, Disaster Training & Exercises at the American Red Cross in Greater New York. Prior to these duties, Maurer was a founder and the first director of the Metropolitan College of New York's Master of Public Administration in Emergency and Disaster Management.

Since July 2001, Dr. Maurer has been an adjunct assistant professor, specializing in the impact of violence, disaster, and war and terrorism upon adolescent development for the Department of Applied Psychology in the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development at New York University (NYU). He was an instructor for Center for Management of the Division of Business and Legal Studies of the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS) in the Business Continuity & Homeland Security certificate program. Mick is an adjunct instructor at the State University of New York-Empire State College distance learning Emergency Management and Fire Services Administration undergraduate degree program.

Dr. Maurer is a Senior Emergency Planner for the CUNY-SPS contract with the NY-NJ-CT-PA Regional Catastrophic Planning Team. He also serves as the subject matter expert for the redesign of the National Incident Management System "G" course for SigmaTech under a U.S. Office of Personnel Management contract.

Gerard McCarty (BA in Criminal Justice, John Jay College; MPA in Operations, John Jay College)

Gerard McCarty currently serves as General Manager, Emergency Management where he is responsible with the development and implementation of the Port Authority's Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Incident Management programs across the agency. Before joining the Port Authority in 2004, Jerry had already achieved a distinguished list of accomplishments in law enforcement, public safety and emergency management in the New York City region and elsewhere.

In October 1973, Mr. McCarty joined the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and served in a variety of uniformed and undercover roles to include an assignment in the NYPD's Emergency Services Unit. In 1995, he joined the New York City Mayor's Office of Operations as the First Deputy Mayor's representative to the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), then a unit within the NYPD, and supervised the transfer of OEM to an independent organization within the Mayor's Office to include the recruitment of a new director and the selection of hiring of staff.

After joining the newly revitalized OEM as Chief of Staff, Jerry was promoted to Deputy Director of Field Operations, and later to Deputy Director for Special Operations. In these positions, he served as either Incident Commander or On-Scene Coordinator for the most involved emergencies in New York City during that period.

In 1999, Jerry joined the Federal Emergency Management Agency Region II's Branch Chief, Operations and Planning in the Response and Recovery Division where he coordinated preparedness and or disaster relief efforts during such events as Y2K, Hurricane Lenny, Operation Sail 2000, United Nations Millennium Assembly, and the World Economic Forum. In 2000, he was requested by the United States Department of State to provide technical assistance Dominican Republic's Civil Defense during Hurricane Debby. He also assisted the countries of Guatemala, Nicaragua and Dominican Republic in the development of emergency response plans.

During the World Trade Center disaster, Jerry served as the FEMA representative to the New York City Office of Emergency Management; and subsequently served as FEMA's Deputy Operations Section Chief where he was instrumental in coordinating the federal response to the recovery efforts all among private and public agencies impacted by the disaster. Following his work at the World Trade Center site Jerry was assigned as Division Director, National Preparedness Division. Jerry joined the Port Authority of NY & NJ in 2004 as General Manager, Emergency Management and since then has led a broad range of readiness initiations to include: agency-wide emergency operations plan development; organization and implementation of a corporate business continuity programs; expansion and enhancement of the authority's emergency operations center and field response assets. Additionally, he has coordinated responses to several significant emergency events to include Port Authority assistance to the city of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.

Mr. McCarty has a B.A. in Criminal Justice and a Master's in Public Administration from John Jay College of the City University of New York.

Jerry has been awarded: The United States Department of Agriculture Award of Excellence, The New York Federal Executive Board Award for Outstanding Achievement, The Dominican Republic Chamber of Deputies Medallion of Merit, and The Port Authority of NY & NJ Award of Achievement.

Raymond M. McPartland (MA, MPA)

Adjunct Prof. McPartland is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tier One Associates LLC. Tier One consults and develops training on matters of life safety, emergency preparedness, and homeland security for both the private and public sector and specializes in creating unique, client specific, realistic training and preparedness programs. Mr. McPartland is also a subject matter expert with the National Center for Biomedical Research and Training (NCBRT) at Louisiana State University, The National Center for Security and Preparedness (NCSP) at the University of Albany, and the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense Information Analysis Center (CBRNIAC). His current full-time position is as an active trainer and Detective with the New York City Police Department's Counterterrorism Division.

Currently assigned to the NYPD's Counterterrorism Division's Training Section as a lead instructor and curriculum development specialist, Detective McPartland is a lead instructor with their regional training team responsible for instructing patrol, specialty personnel, and regional partners in various aspects of terrorism and counter-terrorism. He is currently the Division's subject matter expert on active shooter events and one of the primary authors of the New York City Police Department's published research work - Active Shooter: Recommendations and Analysis for Risk Mitigation. Other topics of instruction include active shooter preparedness and response, critical infrastructure protection, maritime terrorism, WMD and radiological awareness, hostile surveillance detection, and behavioral analysis and observation.

Lorraine Motola (MS in Protection Management, John Jay College of Criminal)

Professor Motola has over 27 years of NYC local government experience and is currently the Director of Logistics & Emergency Preparedness for the NYC Department of Health & Mental Hygiene. She also held the position of Corporate Security Manager at Polo Ralph Lauren headquarters. Previously, she worked at NYC Department of Transportation, for nineteen (19) years and for the last five (5) was the Director of Facility Security. Professor Motola joined the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation in 1979 as an original Urban Park Ranger, and was later promoted to the position of Manhattan Borough Supervisor, based in Central Park. In May, 2007, she earned a Master of Science degree in Protection Management, with a concentration in Emergency Management, from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

Said Slimani (Ph.D in Engineering, The Graduate Center, CUNY)

Adjunct Professor Slimani is an expert technologist and Information Technology professional with over 20 years of computing experience. He is involved in developing web based application since the early nineties. He lead teams responsible for software and web development technologies and operations. In addition to data management and software development, his expertise extend to cyber security. His knowledge span multiple fields and disciplines. Currently, he is a Computer Systems Manager with New York City Transit where he manages software development as well as information technology projects.

Ronald Spadafora (MPS in Criminal Justice, Long Island University; BS in Fire Science, John Jay College; BA in Health Education, Queens College)

Assistant Chief Ronald Spadafora is a 33-year veteran in the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) and is the Chief of Logistics in the Bureau of Operations. On 9-11, he was recalled to the WTC and supervised both rescue and fire suppression efforts at the North Tower and WTC 7. He was named the WTC Chief of Safety in October 2001 for the entire Recovery Operation ending in June of 2002. On August 14-15, 2003, he headed the Logistics Section for the FDNY during the New York City Blackout.

In the aftermath of the 2005 Katrina hurricane, he was designated Deputy Incident Commander of the FDNY Incident Management Team and sent to Louisiana to assist the New Orleans Fire Department.

Chief Spadafora is an adjunct professor at Metropolitan College of New York (Emergency and Disaster Management - MPA Program) and has been an adjunct professor of Fire Science at John Jay College (CUNY) for over 20 years. He has written dozens of articles in periodicals such as: WNYF (With New York Firefighters), Fire Engineering, Size-Up, and the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. His first book, Firefighter Exams, was published by McGraw-Hill Companies in 2008. Sustainable Green Design and Firefighting – a Fire Chief's Perspective, his most recent work, is scheduled for publication by Cengage Learning at the end of 2011. He holds a MPS degree in Criminal Justice from Long Island University (C.W. Post Center), a BS degree in Fire Science from John Jay College and a BA degree in Health Education from Queens College (CUNY).

Michael Spall (Guest Lecturer and EDM Program Advisor) SpallM@coned.com

Mr. Spall is currently the Emergency Management Preparedness and Liaison Department Manager for Consolidated Edison of New York, Inc. He has held a manager level position in Emergency Management since the department's inception in the year 2000. Consolidated Edison of New York, Inc. is one of the country's largest investor owned utility companies with over 3.2 million electric, 1.06 million natural gas and 1,800 steam customers.

His primary mission is to facilitate the Company's efforts in preparedness for, and response to operational emergencies and unplanned crisis situations using the Incident Command System. That mission also extends to emergency preparedness for major planned activities, and his everyday responsibilities of outreach, liaison, and relationship bridge building with NY City and Westchester County government agency stakeholders. He is the primary liaison with NY City's Office of Emergency Management and the NYPD Operations Division. His department also spearheads Business Continuity efforts throughout the Company. Prior to his current position, he was Assistant Director, Media Relations. He also spent 12 years in a variety of positions at the Indian Point 2 Nuclear Power Plant in Buchanan, NY. 

He holds a BS in Environmental Science from SUNY College at Purchase and a Master's degree in Protection Management from CUNY John Jay School of Criminal Justice.

Joan Thomas (BS, Mercy College; MPA, Metropolitan College of New York)

Adjunct Professor Joan Thomas works with Primary Care Development Corporation (PCDC) based in Manhattan in the role of Senior Program Manager specializing in Emergency Management and Business Continuity Initiatives. She previously worked with NYC Office of Emergency Management developing logistical components, based on the federal standards and requirements, for citywide emergency events. Ms. Thomas was part of the development and implementation of the N.I.P. Crisis Counseling Center to assist and provide psychological assessment and services for survivors and families of victims after 9/11. She has held many management positions that directly related to the improvement, growth and protection of business operations, possessing a successful history in management, operations development and restructure, with both large and small organizations. Ms. Thomas earned her BS in Business Administration from Mercy College, Magna Cum Laude, with a specialization in Management and Finance, with Business Department Honors. She holds an MPA in Emergency and Disaster Management, graduating Pi Alpha Alpha honors from Metropolitan College of New York.

Ms. Thomas also holds a Federal Emergency Management Agency certification as a Master Exercise Practitioner (MEP), is a Certified Business Continuity Planner (ABCP) and a Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) with IAEM. Thomas has published articles in the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) Bulletin (2009), and in the Journal of Business Continuity and Emergency Management (2010) and has been a guest lecturer on Emergency Management and Business Continuity topics at conferences, webinars and workshops throughout the US and in Canada.

Johnny W. Velez (MPA in Master of Public Administration in Emergency and Disaster Management, Metropolitan College of New York)

Adjunct Professor Velez is a paralegal supervisor in the New York City Law Department, and a veteran Air Force non-commissioned officer who supported aeromedical evacuation operations. He is a recipient of the Air Force Achievement Medal, the New York City Law Department Legal Assistant Achievement Award, and two time recipient of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation, USA Freedom Corps,& Corporation for National & Community Service award. His experiences in the legal and continuity of operations (COOP) aspects of emergency management began in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks. The experience has led him to research business processes, and legal issues concerning legislation, occupational safety, civil rights , and the role of government during emergencies as well as the subsequent recovery. During Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene (August 26 -29 2011), Professor Velez managed a Hurricane Shelter/ Evacuation center for three days. He is a certified trainer for Weapons of Mass Destruction Awareness and well versed in the Homeland Security Exercise Evaluation Program. He is currently pursuing his PhD in the School of Public Service Leadership at Capella University.

Linda Whitaker (Guest lecturer and Program Advisor) lwhitaker@aging.nyc.gov

Ms. Whitaker is Assistant Commissioner of the Office for Emergency Preparedness at New York City Department for the Aging (DFTA). She oversees the coordination of emergency services to the community as well as the agency continuity of operations. Ms. Whitaker is the DFTA liaison to NYC Office for Emergency Management. She plans, organizes and manages the participation of community groups in emergency activities, and assists other public and voluntary agencies in emergency planning activities. Ms. Whitaker brings over thirty (30) years of experience in community-based and contract management services. She holds a Baccalaureate degree in Economics from Queens College and a Masters in Public Administration from Baruch College.

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