Director, Emergency Management & Business
Continuity
St. John's University
Salary: $126,800.00 - $144,250.00 Annually
Job Type: Full-Time Administrator
Job Number: [contact details available in the full listing]
Location: Queens Campus, NY
Department:
Closing:
St. John's, established in 1870, has two New York City campuses;
international locations in Rome, Italy; Limerick, Ireland; and
Paris, France; and study abroad locations around the world. The
Princeton Review and other top rankings consistently recognize the
University's outstanding academics, diverse student body, dynamic
internship, and volunteer opportunities, focus on student life, and
diverse study abroad offerings. St. John's University offers more
than 100 undergraduate and graduate programs in its six colleges
and schools, with a growing number of programs offered online. The
University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher
Education and 12 other major academic and professional
associations.
A dedication to diversity, equity and inclusion is at the heart of
our mission. As a Catholic and Vincentian university, St. John's is
committed to institutionalizing practices of inclusive excellence
to ensure that we welcome and celebrate the intrinsic worth of all
members of our community. We will become an even stronger
university as we enhance equity at every level of our
institution.Our graduates will excel in the competencies and values
needed for leadership and service in a rapidly evolving
world.
Job Summary
The Director of Emergency Management and Continuity at St. John's
University is a subject matter expert in all aspects of emergency
management-including planning, prevention, response, and
recovery-as well as business and operational continuity. Using an
all-hazards approach, the Director identifies and mitigates risks
that could potentially disrupt university operations at any of St.
John's locations, domestic or international.
With a strong operational focus, the Director ensures that
emergency management plans are actionable, widely understood,
appropriately resourced, and routinely exercised. The goal is to
protect lives, property, and university assets while building a
resilient institution capable of operating through and recovering
from crises.
This position also authors and manages the university's enterprise
continuity program, coordinating across schools, departments, and
global locations. The Director ensures all continuity plans remain
current and effective in supporting St. John's through both
expected and unexpected disruptions. This role plays a vital part
in ensuring university governance, operations, and recovery can
continue in the face of man-made or natural incidents.
An effective communicator, strategic thinker, and skilled project
manager, the Director is responsive in emergencies, anticipates
risk, closes capability gaps, and fosters a culture of
preparedness. This position also collaborates closely with the
University's Operations to develop and execute Homeland Security
Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP)-compliant exercises. The
role carries 24/7 emergency responsibilities.
Job Responsibilities
Policies, Plans, and Procedures - 40%
Lead stakeholder committees to develop and maintain emergency
and continuity plans.
Conduct multi-disciplinary risk assessments and hazard
mitigation planning.
Create, maintain and update the university-wide Comprehensive
Emergency Management Plan (CEMP).
Tailor Emergency Operations Plans (EOPs) for each campus or
center, including international locations.
Ensure compliance with regulatory and accessibility
standards.
Collaborate with departments and schools to maintain continuity
plans that prioritize core missions (teaching, research, housing,
and public service).
Coordinate with Enterprise Risk Management and international
campus leaders.
Establish and maintain a University-wide travel security
governance framework that sets institutional standards for
University-sponsored travel risk management, including decision
authority, risk-tolerance thresholds by destination, and approval
and documentation expectations applicable to faculty, staff, and
students.
Oversee an operational travel security program that provides a
single intake and tracking mechanism forUniversity-sponsored
travel, conducts trip-level risk reviews, delivers pre-departure
briefings for elevated-risk locations, and coordinates active
traveler communications and emergency response.
Establish a mandatory travel insurance standard covering
emergency medical treatment, medical evacuation, trip disruption,
and repatriation; enforce verification as part of the travel
registration workflow.
Exercises and Outreach - 20%
Design and deliver HSEEP-compliant training, exercises, and
public preparedness campaigns.
Maintain a multi-year training and exercise calendar.
Develop outreach programs for students, faculty, and staff on
preparedness and resilience.
Build partnerships with NYC Emergency Management, regional
universities, and professional associations.
Community Education and Engagement - 15%
Develop and lead campus-wide education and outreach initiatives
to promote understanding of emergency management tools, plans, and
individual preparedness responsibilities.
Deliver engaging, accessible content to students, faculty, and
staff through workshops, briefings, printed materials, digital
campaigns, and orientation programs.
Ensure emergency plans and continuity tools are not only
developed but also understood and embraced by the campus
community.
Partner with Student Affairs, Residence Life, Human Resources,
and academic units to embed preparedness education into community
life and institutional culture.
Foster a culture of shared responsibility and proactive risk
reduction.
Strategy and Continuous Improvement - 15%
Serve as a standards champion across departments to build
institutional resilience.
Identify and prioritize innovative risk reduction
strategies.
Track corrective actions and incorporate lessons learned from
exercises and incidents.
Advance the integration of continuity into emergency response
planning.
Implement a travel risk intelligence and monitoring capability
with centralized visibility into active University-sponsored trips,
automated country/city risk ratings, alerts for emerging global
incidents, and direct support for emergency response coordination,
with redundant access for Public Safety and program
administrators.
Emergency Response - 5%
Serve as Incident Commander orassistin ICS role assignment
during EOC activations.
Lead operational setup and readiness for all potential EOC
sites.
Deploy to incident locations as needed and support
international response operations.
Partnership Development - 5%
Establish partnerships with peer institutions
andprivate-sectorstakeholders.
Facilitate integration, liaison, and best-practice sharing
across continuity communities.
Competencies, Education, Experience
Required Education:
Bachelor's degree in Emergency Management, Public
Administration, Business, or related field.
Required Experience:
Minimum of 7 years of emergency management/continuity or
program management experience; or 5-7 years with a related graduate
degree.
Minimum of 5 years in a supervisory capacity.
Required Skills and Certifications:
Demonstrated expertise in crisis and continuity planning.
Familiarity with FEMA, NIMS, HSEEP, and regulatory
frameworks.
Familiarity with travel risk management frameworks, including
country/destination risk ratings, traveler tracking platforms,
pre-departure briefings, and institutional duty-of-care
obligations.
Completion of ICS courses: IS 100, IS 200, IS 700, IS 800.
Valid driver's license (or ability to obtain a NY
license).
Strong communication, collaboration, and problem-solving
skills.
Ability to manage multiple projects in a fast-paced,
high-stakesenvironment.
Preferred Qualifications:
Master's degree (MBA or related field).
Certified Emergency Manager (CEM), CBCP, or FEMA MEP
certification.
Experience ina highereducation or global
enterprisesetting.
Strong data management and information security awareness.
Supplemental Information
Institutional Impact
The Director strengthens university-wide resilience and
governance during emergencies.
Leads major event planning support and contributes to unplanned
incident response.
Manages a significant Public Safety budget and partners with
all university departments.
Authority and Decision-Making
Develops and advises on emergency and continuity policies.
Makes real-time decisions during crises, including
priority-setting and resource deployment.
Advisessenior university leadership on readiness, response, and
recovery strategies.
Key Relationships
Collaborates with university leaders, Public Safety personnel,
faculty, and operations teams.
Serves asliaisonto external emergency agencies and peer
institutions.
RepresentsPublic Safety in university-wide meetings on risk,
continuity, and compliance.
Direct Reports
One Manager (to be hired)
*Important Note- St. John's is NOT an E-Verify
Employer
St. John's offers a competitive compensation program which is
commensurate with your qualifications, experience, and contingent
upon the departmental budget. St. John's University considers
factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of
the position, candidate's work experience, education/training, key
skills, internal peer equity, as well as market and organizational
considerations when extending an offer.
We also offer an extremely comprehensive benefits program to meet
the diverse needs of our workforce. Along with exceptional benefits
such as medical, dental, life insurance, long term disability
insurance, tuition remission, generous 403(b) employer
contribution, employee assistance program, and liberal paid time
off policies, faculty and staff can also enjoy St. John's
performing arts, libraries, bookstores, dining facilities, campus
recreation and sporting events
Any offer of employment is subject to receipt by St. John's
University of satisfactory references, verification of employment
and education.
St. John's University is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All
qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to
race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
national or ethnic origin, age, status as an individual with a
disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic
protected by law.
To apply, please visit https://www.schooljobs.com/careers/stjohns/jobs/5462213/director-emergency-management-business-continuity
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