Join Women in Homeland Security SoCal for a holiday party and panel discussion focused on career development followed by networking. The panel features incredible speakers in the field of crisis and emergency management from the Port of Los Angeles, Walmart, Walt Disney Company, Constant Associates and Mount St. Mary’s University.
The panel will serve as a resource for women who wish to enter the field and rise up its ranks. Types of questions will include: What variations exist among different industries in terms of salary range and benefits? What and how much can I negotiate once I land a job? What job growth can I expect in this sector?
Moderator:
Lorraine Schneider, Global Crisis Manager, The Walt Disney Company
Panelists:
Andrea Davis, Director of Global Emergency Management, Walmart
Michelle Constant, CEO & Founder, Constant Associates
Treemonisha Smith, Director of Emergency Services and EHS, Mount St. Mary's University
Anna Burton, Emergency Management Coordinator II, City of Los Angeles, Harbor Department, Port Police
Panelist Bios:
Anna M. Burton, Emergency Manager, City of Los Angeles Harbor Department
Anna M. Burton is the lead Emergency Manager for the City of Los Angeles Harbor Department coordinating the emergency management program for the Port of Los Angeles, its employees, stakeholders and tenants. Prior to joining the Port, Anna was with the Los Angeles Department of Airports. She led emergency planning efforts to the Van Nuys (General Aviation) Airport and, as the Appointed Chief Resilience Officer for the LAX, coordinated resilience initiatives across the department.
Prior to supporting the airports, Anna was the Assistant General Manager for the City’s Emergency Management Department (EMD) from 2003 – 2016. In addition to this position, Anna was honored to be appointed by the Honorable Mayor Eric Garcetti as the EMD Interim General Manager in 2013. She has represented the City as its Emergency Manager, Emergency Operations Board Member and Emergency Management Committee Chair supporting the Los Angeles/Long Beach Urban Area Security Initiative, a subsection of the Department of Homeland Security, overseeing and recommending distribution of more than $375 million of Homeland Security Grant program allocations.
Anna is a long time member of the Business and Industry Council for Emergency Planning and Preparedness (BICEPP), where she proudly held the position of Vice President to the Public Sector. She is the membership chair for the Earthquake Country Alliance, the agency leading the Shakeout exercise, and is active in the Southern California Women in Homeland Security (whssocal.org). Anna received her Bachelor’s degree and Master in Public Administration from California State University Long Beach and has held a Certificate of Emergency Management from the International Association of Emergency Management (IAEM.org).
Michelle Constant, CEO, Constant Associates
Michelle Constant, MBA, is the CEO of Constant Associates, a disaster and crisis management consultancy. She brings over twenty (20) years of experience spanning health security, emergency management, and business operations. As a practitioner, Ms. Constant provides expert consult to clients at all levels of government and the private sector on diseases and threats, including COVID-19, H1N1, Ebola, and Anthrax. As an engaged contributor to the field, she has spoken at the National Homeland Security Conference, the International Association of Emergency Managers Conference, and the National Preparedness Summit. She has been published in the Crisis Response Journal and the International Association of Emergency Managers trade publication. As an executive, Ms. Constant founded and serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Constant Associates. Under her leadership, Constant Associates has established successful practices across four (4) areas: emergency management, health security, healthcare preparedness, and counterterrorism. She formed two Joint Ventures and significantly expanded the company’s client list to include Federal government, Fortune 100 companies, and local clients across the West Coast. Under her leadership, the company has won seventeen (17) awards, been published across four (4) journals, and has presented at the most prestigious conferences in the industry.
Ms. Constant has worked to fortify the business’ internal operations, to include the roll out of several systems to improve efficiencies, build the culture of the organization, strengthen environmentally conscious practices, and encourage practices that honor diversity, equity and inclusion. Ms. Constant maintains a strong commitment to philanthropy as demonstrated in her service as the past President of Women in Homeland Security and a mentor for USC School of Business women’s program. Ms. Constant earned a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern California and dozens of other sector and threat-specific certifications.
Andrea Davis, Senior Director of Global Emergency Management, Walmart
Andrea Davis started humbly: college as a single teen mother and waitressing graveyard shifts to make ends meet. Those challenges fostered her drive to succeed and a desire to help others in crisis. Ms. Davis’s career in emergency management began in 1999 working for a small non-profit in San Francisco, the Collaborating Agencies Responding to Disaster (SF CARD). From there, she went on to work as the Emergency Manager for the Golden State Division of the Salvation Army, the SF Volunteer Center, the 12th District of the Federal Reserve Bank and the City and County of San Francisco. In early 2020, Ms. Davis had the amazing opportunity to join the Walmart Corporation as their Senior Director of Global Emergency Management. She leads the team responsible for preparing for disasters, developing business continuity plans, and managing crises to protect Walmart associates and customers around the world. Ms. Davis joined Walmart from the Walt Disney Company where she served as their Director of Global Crisis Management and Business Continuity. There, she led an enterprise-wide department responsible for developing and implementing culturally-relevant emergency management training programs, exercises, crisis and family assistance operations, and employee preparedness initiatives across the globe.
Prior to Disney, Ms. Davis served as the External Affairs Director for FEMA’s Louisiana Recovery Office. There, she oversaw all media, intergovernmental and congressional activities for one of the U.S.’ largest disaster recovery efforts, with a total recovery portfolio of over $25 billion. Ms. Davis’s passion is volunteer service which led to her selection as the Inaugural Emergency Manager of the Year by the International Association of Emergency Managers. She was recently elected as Vice Chair for the NW Arkansas American Red Cross. Her prior service includes: the Board Chair for the American Red Cross, LA Region, a Member of the Tiffany Circle National Council, a Member of the US Save the Children's Corporate Board, an Advisory Board Member for Dr. Lucy Jones Center for Science and Society, a Member of the National Children's Resiliency Leadership Board and a Member of the Garry Marshall Theatre Board.
Lorraine Schneider, Program Manager, Global Crisis Management, The Walt Disney Company
Lorraine Schneider is a Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) who has developed, facilitated and implemented rigorous training and exercise programs serving The Walt Disney Company, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as local jurisdictions and nonprofits. In 2020, she launched the Emergency Management Growth Initiative (EMGI) in an effort to make the emergency management profession more visible and accessible.
Ms. Schneider served as an inaugural board member of Women in Homeland Security – Southern California and is the producer and host of the COVID-19 Heroes podcast. She is currently pursuing an Executive MSc in International Strategy and Diplomacy at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and has previously received a Certificate degree in Emergency Management & Homeland Security from UCLA Extension, as well as a BA in North American Studies from the Freie Universität Berlin. In 2014, Ms. Schneider left her European roots behind to move to Los Angeles, where she currently resides with her wife.
Treemonisha Smith, Director of Emergency Management and Environmental Health & Safety, Mount Saint Mary’s University - Los Angeles
Treemonisha Smith is the Director of Emergency Management and Environmental Health & Safety at Mount Saint Mary’s University - Los Angeles, where she leads emergency management and safety programs for MSMU’s geographically diverse campuses.
After jump-starting her career at the City of Los Angeles Emergency Management Department, Ms. Smith found her niche for higher education emergency management and has held positions at the Georgia Institute of Technology, UCLA Geffen School of Medicine, and Loyola Marymount University. In these roles, she directed emergency planning, training and exercise programs, and outreach campaigns. She also developed operations plans for special events, including a gubernatorial inauguration, Major League Soccer matches, commencement, and NCAA Division 1 football. Before joining MSMU, Treemonisha served as Director of SALUS and Organizational Strategy at the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC), overseeing the ongoing development and expansion of SALUS, a GIS-based crisis and event management platform that transformed coordination and information sharing in the greater Los Angeles region.
Ms. Smith is a native of Houston, TX. She earned her Master of Science in Biosecurity and Disaster Preparedness from Saint Louis University and her Bachelor of Science in Community Health Science from The University of Southern Mississippi.