Individual Assistance Program Specialist

State of Oklahoma • Oklahoma City, OK

3d • Onsite

About The Position

The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management (OEM) is a dynamic state agency dedicated to preparing for, responding to, recovering from, and mitigating emergencies and disasters across the State of Oklahoma. OEM plays a key role in statewide public safety by coordinating emergency planning, community preparedness, response operations, disaster recovery, and long-term hazard mitigation with local, tribal, state, and federal partners. The agency also maintains the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC), providing centralized coordination during critical events and serving more than 300 local emergency managers across the state.

At OEM, you’ll be part of a mission-driven team that strengthens communities before, during, and after disasters. Whether it’s coordinating response efforts during severe weather, assisting communities with hazard mitigation planning, or providing critical support during emergencies, OEM employees serve with purpose and impact.

We are seeking an Individual Assistance Program Specialist providing support to our Disaster Recovery Program area. This position is located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

This position is a regular, full-time position governed by the Oklahoma Civil Service system and subject to the Civil Service and Human Capital Modernization Act. Employment in this role is covered by applicable Civil Service Rules, policies, and procedures.

This position is subject to a required 12-month trial period, during which performance, conduct, and overall suitability for continued employment will be evaluated in accordance with Civil Service Rules.

Under the direction of the Disaster Recovery Program Coordinator, the Individual Assistance Program Specialist performs professional-level emergency management work supporting statewide disaster response and recovery operations, Individual Assistance programs, Mass Care coordination, survivor assistance, damage assessment, recovery center operations, recovery grant administration, data analysis, and voluntary agency coordination.

This position serves as a technical and operational resource to local jurisdictions, tribal governments, state and federal agencies, voluntary organizations, and other recovery partners regarding Individual Assistance and disaster survivor support. Responsibilities include supporting Initial and Preliminary Damage Assessments, analyzing disaster impacts and unmet needs, coordinating Mass Care and recovery services, supporting establishment and operation of survivor assistance centers, administering assigned recovery grant programs, monitoring subrecipient performance, managing disaster recovery data and reporting, and supporting statewide volunteer and donations management activities.

During routine operations, the position develops and maintains plans, procedures, guidance, training, grant documentation, data systems, and partner coordination processes that strengthen statewide Individual Assistance and recovery readiness. During emergency and disaster operations, assigned responsibilities may shift based on incident priorities and may include damage assessment, Mass Care, survivor services, recovery center coordination, grant implementation, data analysis, voluntary agency coordination, or other response and recovery functions.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in business, public administration or urban planning plus one year of qualifying experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience, substituting one year of experience in a technical capacity in emergency preparedness planning or emergency management operations, or in public assistance or disaster recovery operations at the local, state or federal level for each year of the required education plus one additional year of qualifying experience.
• Knowledge of: Emergency response, disaster recovery, and Individual Assistance programs.
• Knowledge of: FEMA Individual Assistance programs, policies, processes, and survivor assistance resources.
• Knowledge of: Initial and Preliminary Damage Assessment processes and disaster declaration support activities.
• Knowledge of: Mass Care principles involving sheltering, feeding, emergency supplies, and survivor support.
• Knowledge of: Disaster Recovery Centers and other survivor assistance center models.
• Knowledge of: Disaster case management, housing recovery, unmet needs coordination, and long-term recovery concepts.
• Knowledge of: Federal and state disaster recovery grant administration, monitoring, documentation, and compliance requirements.
• Knowledge of: Grant lifecycle management, internal controls, subrecipient monitoring, and audit readiness.
• Knowledge of: Volunteer and donations management principles, spontaneous volunteer coordination, and voluntary agency operations.
• Knowledge of: Emergency management program planning and project implementation.
• Knowledge of: Data collection, validation, analysis, reporting, and situational awareness principles.
• Knowledge of: Public administration principles and practices.
• Knowledge of: Records management, report preparation, and technical documentation methods.
• Skills in: Individual Assistance and disaster recovery program coordination.
• Skills in: Damage assessment data collection, validation, analysis, and reporting.
• Skills in: Mass Care and survivor services coordination.
• Skills in: Recovery center and long-term recovery coordination.
• Skills in: Grant administration, programmatic monitoring, and documentation review.
• Skills in: Data analysis and development of decision-support products.
• Skills in: Technical writing, report preparation, and executive briefing development.
• Skills in: Stakeholder engagement and interagency coordination.
• Skills in: Training, facilitation, and technical assistance.
• Skills in: Program planning, organization, and project management.
• Abilities to: Evaluate disaster impacts, survivor needs, and recovery resource gaps.
• Abilities to: Analyze and communicate complex disaster recovery and grant information.
• Abilities to: Coordinate multiple programs, projects, and operational responsibilities simultaneously.
• Abilities to: Independently perform professional-level Individual Assistance and recovery program work.
• Abilities to: Interpret and apply disaster recovery policies, program requirements, and grant guidance.
• Abilities to: Identify compliance concerns, documentation gaps, and issues requiring corrective action or escalation.
• Abilities to: Translate disaster data into clear analyses, reports, and recommendations.
• Abilities to: Establish and maintain effective working relationships with local, tribal, state, federal, nonprofit, faith-based, and voluntary agency partners.
• Abilities to: Present technical and program information clearly to diverse audiences.
• Abilities to: Work effectively in stressful, rapidly changing, and high-tempo disaster environments.
• Abilities to: Adapt assigned duties to incident priorities and changing operational requirements.
• Must possess a valid Oklahoma Driver License at the time of appointment.
• Must be willing and able to perform all job-related travel associated with the position.
• Must be willing and able to report to disaster-affected areas and emergency operations facilities on short notice.
• Must be willing and able to work extended hours, evenings, weekends, and holidays during emergency and disaster operations as required.
• Must have and maintain the physical and mental stamina required to perform assigned duties during routine operations, exercises, disasters, and emergency incidents.
• Must maintain confidentiality of sensitive survivor, operational, grant, and program information.
• Must be willing to serve as Duty Officer on a rotating basis as assigned.
• Must complete and maintain required FEMA, NIMS, and agency training.

Nice To Haves

• Degree emphasis in Emergency Management, Public Administration, Social Services, Human Services, Public Health, Community Development, or a related field.
• Experience supporting FEMA Individual Assistance, disaster recovery, Mass Care, survivor services, or disaster declaration activities.
• Experience conducting or supporting Initial Damage Assessments or Preliminary Damage Assessments.
• Experience coordinating Disaster Recovery Centers, Multi-Agency Resource Centers, Local Assistance Centers, or other survivor assistance operations.
• Experience administering or monitoring federally funded disaster recovery or human services grant programs.
• Experience with Disaster Case Management Program implementation, subrecipient monitoring, or programmatic reimbursement review.
• Experience working with Long-Term Recovery Groups, VOAD organizations, faith-based organizations, or voluntary agencies active in disaster.
• Experience with volunteer and donations management, spontaneous volunteer coordination, or Volunteer Reception Centers.
• Experience utilizing disaster data, damage assessment, case management, or recovery reporting systems.
• Associate Emergency Manager, Certified Emergency Manager, or related professional credential.
• Bilingual communication skills supporting disaster survivor outreach and recovery operations.

Responsibilities

• Support development, administration, and continuous improvement of statewide Individual Assistance programs and disaster assessment capabilities.
• Develop, maintain, and improve Individual Assistance program procedures, templates, checklists, guidance documents, and operational resources.
• Support planning and preparedness activities related to damage assessment, survivor assistance, disaster declaration support, and recovery coordination.
• Coordinate with local jurisdictions, tribal governments, Area Coordinators, FEMA, state agencies, and voluntary organizations regarding Individual Assistance roles, requirements, and processes.
• Provide technical assistance and training to local jurisdictions regarding damage reporting, survivor needs identification, Individual Assistance processes, and available recovery resources.
• Collect, review, validate, and analyze self-reported and locally reported damage information during disaster operations.
• Support Initial Damage Assessments, Preliminary Damage Assessments, and other Individual Assistance-related assessment activities.
• Coordinate with local jurisdictions and Area Coordinators to validate damage information and identify disaster impacts and unmet needs.
• Analyze disaster information to identify survivor impacts, displacement concerns, access and functional needs, housing issues, unmet needs, and recovery resource gaps.
• Prepare damage assessment summaries, reports, situation updates, executive briefings, and recommendations supporting leadership decision-making and state or federal disaster declaration requests.
• Maintain documentation of actions taken, referrals made, follow-up activities, and unresolved issues requiring escalation.
• Support statewide Mass Care planning and operational coordination to address immediate disaster survivor needs.
• Support statewide Mass Care planning involving sheltering, feeding, emergency supplies, cooling and warming centers, and other survivor support services.
• Develop and maintain Mass Care procedures, shelter planning resources, coordination processes, operational checklists, and reporting tools.
• Coordinate with local jurisdictions, tribal partners, the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, Oklahoma Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, faith-based organizations, and other governmental and nongovernmental partners supporting survivor services.
• Maintain awareness of partner capabilities involving sheltering, feeding, emergency supplies, cleanup assistance, damage assessment, volunteer coordination, donations management, and other disaster services.
• Support coordination of Mass Care resources and services during emergency and disaster incidents.
• Monitor and report shelter status, feeding operations, cooling and warming centers, emergency supply needs, partner activities, survivor needs, and resource requests.
• Identify and elevate unmet needs, operational concerns, resource gaps, and emerging survivor support issues.
• Coordinate survivor referrals to appropriate local, tribal, state, federal, or voluntary agency resources.
• Prepare Mass Care updates for WebEOC, situation reports, executive briefings, and leadership decision-making.
• Support transition of survivor services from immediate response operations into short-term and long-term recovery activities.
• Support planning, establishment, operation, transition, and closeout of survivor assistance centers and long-term recovery initiatives.
• Support planning for Disaster Recovery Centers, Mobile Disaster Recovery Centers, Multi-Agency Resource Centers, Local Assistance Centers, and other survivor assistance center models.
• Develop and maintain recovery center checklists, staffing concepts, partner coordination procedures, reporting tools, and transition or closeout processes.
• Coordinate with FEMA, state agencies, local jurisdictions, tribal governments, voluntary organizations, and other partners regarding recovery center roles, responsibilities, and operational expectations.
• Assist with identifying appropriate recovery center locations, staffing requirements, partner participation, survivor services, and operational resource needs.
• Support recovery center operations and coordinate survivor access to available assistance and recovery resources.
• Monitor recovery center activity, survivor needs, visitor counts, service gaps, resource requests, and operational issues.
• Maintain awareness of governmental and nongovernmental organizations providing disaster casework, legal assistance, housing support, cleanup, rebuilding assistance, financial assistance, and unmet needs services.
• Support development and coordination of Long-Term Recovery Groups and other local recovery organizations.
• Coordinate with local jurisdictions, VOAD partners, and recovery organizations regarding long-term recovery needs and unmet needs.
• Monitor recovery progress and identify emerging survivor vulnerabilities, housing concerns, resource gaps, and other long-term recovery issues.
• Support transition or closeout of recovery centers as survivor needs and service delivery methods change.
• Prepare recovery center updates, unmet needs summaries, recovery snapshots, and coordination reports for agency leadership.
• Support administration, programmatic oversight, compliance monitoring, and closeout of assigned Individual Assistance and disaster recovery grant programs.
• Support administration of Individual Assistance and recovery-related grants, including Disaster Case Management Program grants and other assigned disaster recovery programs.
• Coordinate with FEMA, OEM Finance and Grants personnel, subrecipients, and partner organizations regarding grant requirements, program implementation, reporting, reimbursement, and closeout.
• Monitor subrecipient performance, required documentation, program deliverables, timelines, and compliance with applicable grant and award requirements.
• Conduct programmatic review of reimbursement requests, invoices, performance reports, and supporting documentation for consistency with award requirements.
• Maintain grant files, correspondence, program reports, financial documentation, performance records, and supporting materials in accordance with applicable records requirements.
• Track grant reporting deadlines, periods of performance, deliverables, budget actions, extensions, and closeout requirements.
• Support monitoring activities, audit readiness, corrective action processes, and internal control procedures.
• Maintain appropriate separation of duties and internal controls associated with programmatic review, reimbursement, and approval processes.
• Support implementation of assigned recovery grant programs following disaster declarations.
• Monitor disaster case management activities, outreach efforts, survivor outcomes, unmet needs, and program performance.
• Identify grant issues requiring FEMA clarification, budget adjustments, extensions, corrective action, or leadership review.
• Prepare grant updates, program summaries, and recommendations for agency leadership.
• Support grant closeout following completion of program activities.
• Collect, analyze, maintain, and communicate disaster information supporting situational awareness, disaster declarations, survivor services, recovery coordination, and executive decision-making.
• Maintain familiarity with systems utilized for Individual Assistance, Mass Care, damage assessment, grant management, and disaster recovery reporting.
• Collect, review, validate, monitor, and analyze disaster information from agency, local jurisdiction, FEMA, and partner data sources.
• Review information from Damage.OK.gov, Survey123, WebEOC, FEMA systems, partner reports, local reports, and other approved data sources.
• Identify data gaps, inconsistencies, duplicate reports, trends, emerging needs, and issues requiring follow-up or validation.
• Develop damage assessment summaries, Mass Care updates, recovery snapshots, unmet needs reports, grant updates, and executive briefing materials.
• Support development and improvement of dashboards, data collection tools, standard reports, and tracking processes.
• Coordinate with agency GIS and technology personnel to improve data quality, geospatial visualization, mapping, dashboards, and situational awareness products.
• Maintain templates for leadership briefings, damage summaries, Mass Care reports, recovery updates, and grant reporting.
• Translate complex disaster information into clear summaries, analyses, and recommendations supporting leadership decisions, declaration requests, resource coordination, and stakeholder communication.
• Maintain records required for operational, grant, audit, and after-action purposes.
• Support statewide volunteer and donations management planning and coordination during disaster response and recovery operations.
• Support development and maintenance of statewide volunteer and donations management plans, procedures, guidance, and operational resources.
• Coordinate with Oklahoma VOAD partners and other organizations involved in disaster volunteer and survivor support services.
• Provide technical assistance to local jurisdictions regarding spontaneous volunteer management and donated goods.
• Support development of Volunteer Reception Center concepts, donations management guidance, and partner coordination procedures.
• Maintain current information regarding voluntary organization capabilities, services, and points of contact.
• Identify volunteer, donations, cleanup, and voluntary agency support needs reported by local jurisdictions, Area Coordinators, or disaster survivors.
• Support coordination of spontaneous volunteer activities when requested.
• Coordinate with partners providing cleanup, feeding, sheltering, casework, and other survivor support services.
• Route offers of assistance, donated goods concerns, and volunteer resources to appropriate organizations and coordination structures.
• Support reporting regarding voluntary agency activities, unmet needs, and resource gaps.
• Document partner coordination, referrals, voluntary agency activities, and unresolved needs requiring escalation.
• Strengthen statewide Individual Assistance and recovery capability through planning, training, exercises, partner engagement, and continuous improvement activities.
• Develop and maintain Individual Assistance, Mass Care, recovery, volunteer and donations management, and related program plans, procedures, checklists, and guidance.
• Develop and deliver training, workshops, technical assistance, and outreach activities for local jurisdictions and partner organizations.
• Participate in exercises, preparedness activities, after-action reviews, and improvement planning.
• Identify lessons learned, program gaps, and opportunities to improve statewide Individual Assistance and recovery capabilities.
• Track corrective actions and support implementation of program improvements.
• Prepare reports, presentations, technical guidance, and informational materials.
• Maintain program documentation and planning records.
• Independently manage assigned projects and program responsibilities during routine operations.
• Other duties as assigned.
• Serve as an Individual Assistance, Mass Care, and disaster recovery specialist during emergency incidents, disaster operations, exercises, and State Emergency Operations Center activations.
• Support Individual Assistance and damage assessment operations during disasters.
• Support Mass Care coordination and maintain situational awareness of sheltering, feeding, survivor services, and unmet needs.
• Analyze damage and survivor impact information supporting disaster declaration recommendations and operational decision-making.
• Coordinate recovery information, survivor resource needs, and partner activities.
• Support Disaster Recovery Centers, Mobile Disaster Recovery Centers, Multi-Agency Resource Centers, Local Assistance Centers, and other survivor assistance operations.
• Support volunteer and donations management and voluntary agency coordination.
• Assist with implementation of disaster recovery grant programs following disaster declarations.
• Prepare operational updates, WebEOC entries, situation reports, recovery summaries, and executive briefings.
• Serve as Duty Officer on a rotating basis as assigned.
• Perform other response or recovery assignments based on incident priorities and agency operational needs.

Benefits

• Competitive state retirement benefits with employer matching
• 11 paid holidays each year
• A generous benefit allowance to offset the cost of health, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance premiums for employees and their eligible dependents
• Opportunities for professional growth and cross-agency collaboration
• Priority interview consideration for U.S. veterans with appropriate certification

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level