Bio:
Joan O'Quinn Rivera is an accomplished educator, with over two decades of experience in public health preparedness, emergency management and community resilience. Currently, as an Assistant Professor at Indian River State College (IRSC) since 2016, Joan has been instructing students in several programs including Emergency Administration and Management, Human Services, Fire Science, and Public Administration.
Prior to joining IRSC full-time, Joan spent nearly eight years in preparedness roles with the Florida Department of Health (DOH) in both Indian River and St. Lucie Counties. This extensive public sector experience culminated as the Epidemiology and Public Health Preparedness Program Manager for DOH-St. Lucie, where Joan managed departmental operations, oversaw outbreak investigations, and was responsible for emergency preparedness initiatives. Joan’s background includes direct experience in crisis communications, staff development, and training personnel and volunteers on a variety of emergency management principles including disaster operations and response, exercise design/develop, and the Incident Command System.