Biography

William Spencer has served in the field of public safety/public administration since 2001. His career started in the military as an Engineer within the enlisted ranks and ended 15 years later as a commissioned Intelligence Officer. Simultaneously, he became a Police Officer in Punxsutawney, PA, where he also received firefighting and emergency medical technician certifications. He is currently the new Deputy Director for Operations and Preparedness for the District of Columbia’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency. Prior to taking on that role, he was the Deputy Director of the Western Area Office for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency for 13 years.

Academically, Spencer earned a PhD in the field of Administration and Leadership Studies found within the Department of Sociology. He also has Masters’ degrees in Homeland Security, as well as Emergency Management, with a bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies. Additionally, He is an ROTC graduate, certified K-12 school superintendent in the Commonwealth of PA, a certified emergency manager (CEM) through the International Association of Emergency Managers, as well as a Master Exercise Practitioner (MEP) through FEMA.

Lastly, since January 2014, Spencer has served in the role of Adjunct Faculty & Subject Matter Expert for Associate, Bachelors, and Graduate level courses in the departments of Homeland Security, Emergency Management, Criminal Justice, and Sociology; in addition to serving as an Instructor with Louisiana State University, via the National Center for Biomedical Research and Training (NCBRT) to provide classroom delivery of the Federal Preparedness Consortium sponsored courses, as well as the PA State Fire Academy, and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.