E11 -Disaster Preparedness- Jeff Schlegelmilch, Director of NCDP at Columbia Univ. Earth Institute

Riding the Wave-Project Management for Emergency Managers

I spoke with Jeff Schlegelmilch, a Research Scholar and the Director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. In this role he oversees the operations and strategic planning for the center. Before becoming director, he served as the center's deputy director for more than five years. He also oversees projects related to the practice and policy of disaster preparedness, including the multi-award winning Resilient Children / Resilient Communities Initiative. He is also a Lecturer in the Sustainability Management Program at Columbia’s School of Professional Studies. His areas of expertise include public health preparedness, community resilience and the integration of private and public sector capabilities. Prior his work at Columbia, he was the Manager for the International and Non-Healthcare Business Sector for the Yale New Haven Health System Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response. He was also previously an epidemiologist and emergency planner for the Boston Public Health Commission. He has advised leaders on preparedness systems and policy at all levels of government. He is an Opinion Contributor with The Hill and is frequently utilized as a subject matter expert for numerous media outlets. He is also the author Rethinking Readiness: A Brief Guide to Twenty-First-Century Megadisasters published by Columbia University Press. He holds a Master’s degree in Public Health from UMASS Amherst in Health Policy and Management, and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Quinnipiac University. We spoke about project and program management competencies in disaster planning, the challenges in managing different stakeholders, and measuring programs impacts. We also discussed the balance between emerging changes to emergency management and the diversity of community needs, given the increasing catastrophic disasters in the US. Referenced links: NCDP website https://ncdp.columbia.edu/ His book: Rethinking Readiness: A Brief Guide to Twenty-First-Century Megadisasters http://cup.columbia.edu/book/rethinking-readiness/9780231190411 Resilient Children/Resilient Communities https://rcrctoolbox.org/ NCDP Guide: Is it OK to send my child to school https://ncdp.columbia.edu/custom-content/uploads/2020/08/Covid-19_Back-To-School_Final.pdf