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2024 Conference Agenda*
April 2-4, 2024

*Agenda is subject to change

TUESDAY, APRIL 2ND

1:00-5:00pm (unless otherwise noted)

AEM/CEM Exam
Union Room

Natural Disaster Awareness for Community Leaders (AWR-310)
Mary Schoenfeldt
Pt Defiance Room

Workshop for Washington PIOs (four 1-hour trainings)
Sheri Badger
Proctor Room

The IPAWS MDD: Effective Message Writing and the Message Design Dashboard
Dr. Jeannette Sutton and Travis Cryan
Stadium Room

Would you like to play a game? FEMA’s Cyber Ready Community Game (1:00-3:00pm)
Sarah Miller
Chambers Ballroom

Directors Meeting (3:30-5:00pm)
Robert Ezelle
Chambers Ballroom


WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3RD

8:15am Keynote

Keynote Presentation: Navigating Tomorrow’s Challenges Today: A Vision for the Future of Emergency Management
James Lee Witt, Former FEMA Director
Chambers Ballroom
Presentation

9:25 -10:25am Session One Breakout

2024 Access and Functional Needs (AFN) Town Hall
Jim House & Todd Holloway
Union Room
Presentation

Black Swans, Grey Rhinos, and Dragon Kings: the Next Great Challenges for Emergency Management
Christopher Godley
Pt Defiance Room

Building Resilience for Vulnerable Communities through Emergency Preparedness
Kathleen Edison, Sophia Lopez & Shantala Martin
Commencement Room
Presentation

Advanced Planning…Can it support a community through a High Profile Trial
Amy Gillespie
Proctor Room
Presentation

UW Medicine’s COVID-19 Response
Danica Little, Jasmine Johnson, & Michelle Gillies
Stadium Room
Presentation

10:45am – 11:45am Session Two Breakout

Integrating Emergency Management and Public Health for Local Hazard Risk and Vulnerability Assessment
Evan Mix
Union Room
Presentation

Cutting Through the Fat: Keeping the Public Engaged in an Increasingly Saturated World
Hollie Stark & Maximilian Dixon
Pt Defiance Room
Presentation

Building Disaster Resilient Communities: Practice and Research Collaboration
Resham Patel
Commencement Room
Presentation

Space Weather for the Emergency Management and Preparedness Community
Shawn Dahl
Proctor Room
Presentation

Expanding Access to Crisis and Emotional Support Throughout the Disaster Cycle: Updates and Innovations from the Disaster Distress Helpline
Christian Burgess
Stadium Room
Presentation
Handout 1 | Handout 2

Ready or Not…Strike
Ronnie Mompellier
Tacoma Room

11:50am – 12:50pm Session Three Breakout

Mobile IT Resilience Units​ (MITRU)​
Scott Honaker
Union Room
Presentation

Partnering for the Future of Emergency Management
Moderated by Ryan Eddy, with Panelists: Ann Lesperance, Curry Mayer, and Robert Ezelle
Pt Defiance Room
Presentation

Introduction to the Access & Functional Needs Resource Framework in Emergency Management
Sadie Martinez
Commencement Room
Presentation

Regional and Responsive: Creating a Tri-County Bleeding Control Program
Mikko McFeely
Proctor Room
Presentation

Bridging the gap: Connecting local response and patient movement with healthcare partners
Stacy Parizek & Elya Baltazar
Stadium Room
Presentation

How to Inventory Unreinforced Masonry Buildings in Your Community and Guide Earthquake Risk Mitigation
Maximilian Dixon
Tacoma Room
Presentation

1:30 pm Lunch Keynote

Drop, Cover… hold on, was that a false alert? The public’s experiences during the 2019 and 2020 Ridgecrest, CA earthquake events
Dr. Jeannette Sutton
Chambers Ballroom

3:10pm – 4:10pm Session Four Breakout

Planning Today for a Crisis Tomorrow
Bronlea Mishler
Union Room
Presentation

All Roads Lead Back Locally
With Panelists:
• Damaris Deschner – Emergency Manager for North Central, South Central, and Eastern Regions
• Kayla Grayson – Northwest Region Emergency Manager
• Eric Frank – Southwest Region Emergency Manager
• Lit Dudley – Olympic Region Emergency Manager
• Ana Fuschetto – WSF Company Security Officer & Emergency Manager
Pt Defiance Room
Presentation

The Psychology of Crisis Management
Mary Schoenfeldt
Commencement Room

Using GIS to Effectively Communicate Hazard Information to the Public
Drew Schwitters & Scott North
Proctor Room
Presentation

Wildfire is Here. How to Ignite Your Mitigation Program
Cathrine Robinson
Stadium Room

4:15pm – 5:15pm Session Five Breakout

Applying for the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program (SLCGP)
Zack Hudgins & Josh Castillo
Union Room

The Generational Jive – How to Better Communicate Across Generations within the Emergency Management and Public Health Workforce
Kristina Hansen & Stephanie Schreiber
Pt Defiance Room

Walking to Mordor: A Case Study for Conducting Evacuation Route Assessments
Elyssa Tappero
Commencement Room
Presentation

Understanding and Protecting Tribal Sovereignty within Emergency Management
Lisa Figueroa
Proctor Room
Presentation

Lakeland State Health Care Facility Case Study: Critical Incident Stress Management Support During the Washington State 2023 Gray Fire
Tim Gerlitz
Stadium Room

The Role of Marine Transportation Post Disaster
Xochitl Castaneda
Tacoma Room
Presentation


THURSDAY, APRIL 4TH

8:15am Keynote

Emergency Communication – Lessons Learned in Hawaii
Chris Leonard


9:25 -10:25am Session One Breakout

“I Am Safe” Welfare Messages – Harnessing Community Power to Lighten the Load
Cindi Barker & David Wilma
Union Room
Presentation

Reopening and Resuming Operations
Rick Hoaglund
Pt Defiance
Presentation

Hope Inspired Leadership
Jon Tunheim
Commencement Room
Presentation

Collaborating in Crisis: Media and Emergency Management Partnerships
Charlie Harger
Proctor Room
Presentation

Wildfire In-Home Education: New Red Cross Program coming to your backyard
Hannah Christen
Stadium Room
Presentation

Planning for Migrant Arrivals
Brendan McCluskey & Kenneth Neafcy
Tacoma Room
Presentation


10:45am – 11:45am Session Two Breakout

Crisis and Collaboration: Responding to the 2020 Early Warning Siren Incident at South Fork Tolt Dam
Edan Edmonson
Union Room

Delivering Virtual Personal Preparedness Campaigns
Carly Pacekonis & Amy Haining
Pt Defiance
Presentation
Handout 1 | Handout 2 | Handout 3

AlertMe – Bringing IPAWS Emergency Alerts to the Windows Desktop – Key Learnings, Opportunities, and Challenges
Paul Hall & Lewis Curtis
Commencement Room
Presentation

Harmonizing Hazard Mitigation: Perspectives from Across Government
Derrick Hiebert
Proctor Room

Creating a Culture of Safety in Pierce County
Jacquelyn Meier, Emily Cunningham & Katie Gillespie
Stadium Room
Presentation

Protecting Washington Schools from Damaging Earthquakes
Gabriel Lotto & Bill Steele
Tacoma Room
Presentation
Handout 1 | Handout 2 | Handout 3 | Handout 4 | Handout 5| Handout 6 | Handout 7 | Handout 8
Upcoming Workshop


11:50am – 12:50pm Session Three Breakout

EPIC-EM (East Pierce Interlocal Coalition for Emergency Management): Three Years Strong!
Kirstin Hofmann & Andy McCurdy
Union Room
Presentation

Teenagers in Emergency Management
Samantha Robinson, Viswa Karthic, & Suniti Srinivasan
Pt Defiance
Presentation

Donations Management, How to Prevent the Second Disaster
Larry Mays
Commencement Room
Presentation

Public Health & Emergency Management – Intersections of Collective Impact
Julie de Losada & Gabby Hadley
Proctor Room
Presentation

Burned Out on How to Manage Wildfire Debris? Lessons Learned and Tips from Industry Experts.
Rob Ray & Jason Haynie
Stadium Room
Presentation
Handout

Moulage: What is it and Why you need it
Laurell Sprague
Tacoma Room
Presentation