Jay Roorbach is the primary faculty member for the Emergency Management Bachelor of Science degree program at SUNY Canton. He coordinates the entire curriculum, advises students, and is the primary instructor for all courses. Prior to this assignment, he was the Senior Emergency Planning Coordinator for the University at Buffalo (UB). His role was to coordinate planning for emergencies that affected operations of the University, organize and lead the overall University response strategies when emergencies happened, and ensure continuity of business services, instruction, and research. He designed, built, and led the UB Incident Management Team and Emergency Operations Center for several emergencies and the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic response. Jay has over 25 years of experience in emergency management and preparedness, regulatory compliance and enforcement, and hazardous materials management in the federal, state, military and civilian sectors.
Prior to working at UB, he managed safety and security at a chemical manufacturing plant in Buffalo. He was the Corporate Emergency Manager for a large healthcare system in Buffalo from 2007-2013 where he created a centralized incident management structure for over 50 facilities and 10,000 employees. From 2005-2007, he managed the Urban Area Security Initiative in Southeast Michigan for the Michigan State Police Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division. While in Michigan, Jay served as the Operations Section Chief in the State Emergency Operations Center during the national response to Hurricane Katrina and has responded to many incidents in both Command and General Staff positions during his career.
Jay served in the U.S. Army Chemical Corps for 13 years prior to working at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C. assisting states and larger jurisdictions with the development of homeland security strategies and managing over $1 billion in federal grant funding. As a contractor to the U.S. Department of Justice, he led a team that coordinated, conducted, and evaluated tabletop and full-scale exercises in cities around the country. He also worked as a contractor for the U.S. Department of Transportation providing technical review of petroleum pipeline spill response plans.
Jay is working toward a PhD in Geography from UB with a research concentration in the Geography of Hazards, Risks, and Disasters. He has a master’s degree in Higher Education Administration from UB and a BS in Management from Upper Iowa University, was a certified U.S. Army Instructor, and has formal training in emergency management, incident command and investigation, and hazardous materials management.