Dr. John R. Fisher is professor and chair of the Department of Emergency Services at Utah Valley University. Before coming to UVU, he taught management and communications at Northwest Missouri State University, Boise State University, Athabasca University, and the University of Alberta. John began his career as a newspaper reporter/photographer, reporting the court and police beats and covering emergency services. For eight years he was a public administrator in the Alberta government, working in policy analysis, public information, and legislative affairs. He has a BA and an MA from Brigham Young University and a PhD from the University of Alberta. His principal areas of research are mass media coverage of disaster public policy, disaster preparedness and community resilience, and applied learning online for adult learners. He was a Fulbright Scholar in Kosovo at the Kosovo Academy of Public Safety in 2018-2019.