X

 

Ensuring the Integrity & Excellence of the IAEM Certification Program

All Certification Commissioners hold a current CEM certification.

Certification Commission Leadership

Jon Fessler, CEM - Commission Chair - Completing Term December 31, 2025

Michelle Oblinsky, CEM - Commission Vice Chair - Completing Te rm Dec. 31,, 2025

Certification Commissioners by Class

Class of 2027

Serving through December 31, 2027

  • Shad Ahmed, CEM – Emergency Management | Oregon City, OR (Second Term – Local EM)
  • Allison Bain, CEM – Commander, 633rd Medical Support Squadron | United States Air Force, Newport News, VA (First Term – Military & Healthcare)
  • Kathy Brown, CEM – Deputy Director | Union County EMA, Marysville, OH (First Term – Local EM)
  • Lawrence Cattano, Jr., CEM – Director OEM | City of Perth Amboy, NJ (Second Term – Local EM)
  • Daniel Dunn, Jr., CEM – Operations Officer | United States Coast Guard, Waterford, CT (Second Term – Military)
  • Toni Hauser, CEM – Supervisor, Emergency Preparedness & Response | Minneapolis Health Department, MN (First Term – Healthcare)
  • Bryon Platt, CEM – University Emergency Manager | University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (First Term – Campus)
  • Michael Riedy, CEM – Installation Emergency Manager (EMO) | Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam, HI (Second Term – Federal)
  • Tim Smith, CEM – Retired | Smith Emergency Management Associates, MD (First Term – Academia & Federal)
  • Michael Stitley, CEM – Director of Emergency Response | Tompkins County Dept. of Emergency Response, NY (First Term – Healthcare)

Class of 2026

Serving through December 31, 2026

  • Billy Anderson, CEM – Sr. Emergency Management Specialist | Sound Transit, WA (First Term – Local)
  • David Bujak, CEM – Senior Planner | IEM, OH (First Term – Campus)
  • Billy (B.J.) Dvorak, CEM – Coordinator | Linn County Emergency Management, IA (Second Term – At-Large)
  • Peter Hirai, CEM – Emergency Management Specialist | U.S. Marine Corps Installations - Pacific (Second Term – Military)
  • William Hurtes, CEM – Owner | HTC International, VA (First Term – Consultant/Not-for-Profit)
  • Douglas Mayne, CEM – Senior Consultant, Disaster Management | Witt O'Brien's LLC, WA (Second Term – Military & State)
  • Ralph Nazzaro, CEM – Senior Homeland Security Analyst | Ascenttra, VA (First Term – Healthcare)
  • Michelle Oblinsky, CEM – Chief of the VEST | Virginia Dept. of Emergency Management, VA (Second Term – State)
  • Ross Patterson, CEM – Emergency Management Coordinator | Winston Salem/Forsyth County, NC (Second Term – Not-for-Profit)
  • Michael Ripley, CEM – Santa Clarita, CA (Second Term – At-Large)

Class of 2025

Serving through December 31, 2025

  • Jon Fessler, CEM – VP of Environment, Health, and Safety | Fox Corporation, CA (Second Term – Private Industry)
  • Jason Higginbotham, CEM, LEM – Chief of Security | Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, LA (Second Term – Academia)
  • Sean Holland, CEM – Manager, Airport Operations Center – JFK | The Port Authority of NY & NJ, NJ (First Term – State)
  • Thomas Ignelzi, CEM – Program Manager | Securing the Cities Program - New Orleans Region, LA (First Term – Local EM)
  • Lanita Lloyd, CEM – GA Director | The Salvation Army, GA (First Term – Non-Profit)
  • Alexander Markowski, CEM – Director of Crisis Management & Business Continuity | Fanatics, Inc., NY (Second Term – Private Industry)
  • Sarah Miller, CEM – Assistant Professor/Department Chair | Pierce College, WA (First Term – Consultant)
  • Gary Teeler, CEM – Captain - Public Safety Support Services | Lower Colorado River Authority, TX (First Term – Non-Profit)
  • Libby Turner, CEM – Turner Associates, LLC, GA (First Term – Federal)

Council Representatives

IAEM Regional Representatives

IAEM-Africa Representative – Open

IAEM-Asia Representative – Kyoo-Man Ha, CEM | Adjunct Professor, Inje University, South Korea (First Term, completing 12/31/2025)

IAEM-Canada Representative – David Day, CEM | Manager, Emergency & Safety Services, St. John's, NL, Canada (First Term, completing 12/31/2025)

IAEM-Canada Alternate Representative – Jennifer Smysnuik, CEM | Manager, Emergency Management, City of Toronto, ON, Canada (Second Term, completing 12/31/2025)

IAEM-Canada Alternate Representative – Danielle Trudeau, CEM, ABCP, MDMa | Executive Director, TopShelf Emergency Management, Toronto, ON, Canada (First Term, completing 12/31/2026)

IAEM-Europa Representative – George Karagiannis, CEM | Risk and Resilience Director, International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure, Greece (First Term, completing 12/31/2025)

IAEM-International Representative – Open

IAEM Latin America & Caribbean Representative – Open

IAEM-Middle East Representative – Open

IAEM-Oceania Representative – Christopher Ainsworth, CEM, MBA | Executive Officer, KP3 Collaboration, Australia (Second Term, completing 12/31/2026)

Support Operations

Heather Long, CEM - Federal Exercise Manager, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Pittsburg, PA (Term ends, 12/31/26)

Ex-Officio Appointments

NEMA Representative – Open

FEMA Representative – Open

Board & Staff Liaisons

Board Liaison

Valerie Lucus-McEwen, CEM | IAEM-USA Region 8 President | USARegion8President@iaem.com

Staff Liaison

Kate McClimans | Program Manager, IAEM |  Falls Church, VA | kate@iaem.com