EMA directors becoming common positions for universities

OXFORD and STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Emergency management directors are becoming more common for universities across the country, especially in the south.

Both SEC schools in the state, recently created the position for their campuses.

Mississippi State’s director started in 2017 and Ole Miss hired their coordinator back in February of this year.

“Emergency management is a pretty broad area that can involve law enforcement, but it also involves a lot of other areas on campus, and then it also involves working with other agencies throughout the region, throughout the state, and even beyond,” says MSU Emergency Management Director, Brent Crocker.

The University of Mississippi Emergency Management Coordinator, Amanda Drew believes the increase in the positions stems from universities recognizing the growing need.

“Having someone that’s dedicated to planning, coordination, resource management, training, and it extends beyond just preparing the response teams on campus, it also extends to public safety and public education,” said Drew.

Being prepared for any type of emergency situation or threat is what they’re trained for and train others on, but that’s just one of many duties that comes with the job.

“We help with command coordination, bringing in resources, tracking resources, all the documentation that goes into a response and then, we go into our recovery, so we go into short-term, long-term recovery. We go into the needs of the students. The needs of the university. The needs of the parents and any impacted families, and the outside community, as well.”