Jim Redick (M.P.A. ’09) spent four years in the Navy and six more in the Army National Guard. He saw a career in emergency management as “another way to serve out of uniform.”
He’s been in the field for 20 years, most recently as Norfolk’s director of emergency preparedness and response and now as manager of business continuity and emergency management for Sentara Health. In recognition of Redick’s expertise, he was appointed to the National Advisory Council of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 2022.
Redick serves on the council’s working group on climate change, a subject of major concern in Norfolk. “We’ve evolved from fighting water to adapting and living with it,” Redick said. With FEMA money, the city has elevated houses and bought others, creating wetlands and green space.
Some people may think the city only responds to disasters, Redick said. But emergency managers need to “anticipate, train, plan and exercise for disasters, such as hurricanes, storms, acts of terrorism and the impact of climate change.”
Meeting people where they are is another major goal, he said.
“Not everybody has the wherewithal or the resources to prepare for a disaster,” Redick said. “They might be experiencing disasters on a daily basis. For some people, a power outage might be an inconvenience. For others, it might be the loss of their major food source.
“We have to find out who they are and where they are,” Redick said. One way is by going out in the community and connecting with civic and faith leaders.
Religious communities play a large role in post disaster help, he said, but it’s important to build a relationship with them beforehand, so they can be incorporated into planning and training. “The crucial thing is building trust.”
Redick, who is serving a three-year term on the FEMA council, also is a member of Virginia’s Secure and Resilient Commonwealth Panel. He said his master’s degree in public administration helped prepare him to be a jack-of-all-trades. “It allowed me to be successful working with different parts of government.”
Redick is a regular adjunct instructor in the M.P.A. program. Last semester, he taught Local Government Management. “The quality of the students is fantastic,” Redick said. “I present the information, observe their critical thinking skills and enjoy the conversation.”