Deanne Criswell Paves the Way from Firefighting to Leading FEMA

Deanne Criswell's journey from combating fires to leading FEMA

"Have you managed to get any sleep?" the woman inquired of the mayor.

To the sheriff, she asked, "How are you holding up? Are your family okay?"

She inquired of another official, "Do you have any inquiries for me?"

The approach of this individual is representative of Criswell's mindset when it comes to natural disasters - the locals come first.

After a series of deadly tornadoes hit Oklahoma, CNN accompanied Criswell for an inside peek into how Criswell and her organization handle disasters.

Her message to authorities is uncomplicated: "You aren't alone in this."

The response from the community members and officials was uniformly one of thanks for the fact that the top emergency response leader had come to their town to witness the damage and listen to their personal stories.

However, Criswell was modest, stating, "It's part of my job."

Shattering Barriers

Before she became the FEMA administrator, Criswell started out as a firefighter in Aurora, Colorado. She was only the sixth woman to hold that title.

In an interview with CNN, Criswell recalled, "I never imagined I'd be a firefighter. It wasn't on my list."

At the time, Criswell was wrapping up a divorce, juggling college tuition fees with being a single mother to two children, and so, she joined the Colorado Air National Guard. She was provided the option of loading bombs or fighting fires and opted for the latter.

"The firefighters seemed to be enjoying themselves so I thought, 'I'll give it a shot'." She said smilingly. "I loved it, I was good at it, and I decided that's what I was going to do."

Criswell would make firefighting her career, including two overseas deployments to Kuwait and Qatar following 9/11. Along the journey, she earned a college degree, two master's degrees, and eventually rose to head Aurora's emergency management office, facilitating evacuation accommodations and reconnecting families displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

She joined the FEMA under the Obama administration, helping manage the agency's response to natural disasters across the nation. In 2019, she was named the first woman to lead New York City's Emergency Management Department, where, during her less than a year on the job, she helped guide the city through some of the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, as FEMA's head, Criswell aims to inspire others to take opportunities and professional risks.

"You need to let the journey guide you," she said. "Believe in yourself, take the personal risk if needed, and simply do the work to reach the level you want to."

Taking a Seat at the Table

When Criswell was confirmed unanimously as FEMA's 12th administrator, shattering a glass ceiling wasn't a priority.

Deanne Criswell working as a firefighter in Aurora, Colorado.

"When I was first asked to take on this task, I didn't think about it much," she confessed.

That changed in her first week as administrator.

"One of my younger female employees had come up to me after a meeting and said, "A year ago, there were zero women in my chain of command from me to the President of the United States," she said. "Now there are five." This insight led Criswell to realize, "People take note."

Criswell is familiar with the hurdles women can experience in her field. "As I was rising in my career, it was always a balancing act between demonstrating my self-assurance and my abilities while being called derogatory names," she shared, admitting that those terms were hurled at her "numerous times."

"You have to have faith in yourself - you belong at that table, your voice has to be heard," she advised.

Now that she's a leader in the federal government, Criswell employs her place to boost the voices of the women underneath her. "I like to observe how women are either expressing their opinions or seeming hesitant to voice their thoughts, and I try to encourage them," she divulged to CNN. "And if somebody makes a comment, I immediately jump in and say, 'That's a fantastic idea,' right? That validation is significant, particularly when seated as the leader in the room."

That dynamic is already in progress - her first meeting in Oklahoma with state emergency management leaders and regional FEMA officials was led by women.

On-the-Ground Leadership

During her three years as administrator, Criswell has clocked over 100,000 miles, traveling to disaster zones in every part of the country.

Criswell believes that seeing the damage firsthand is fundamental to the determinations she makes regarding FEMA's response. "It helps me eliminate the red tape and break down the bureaucracy to make sure it's about people, not just numbers."

Criswell underlines the necessity of listening directly to victims in order to understand their pain and sadness. This approach enables her to connect with important figures at various levels of government. In Oklahoma, she visited first responders, local authorities, state emergency management executives, and representatives of impacted Indigenous communities.

She stresses that disaster relief surpasses political boundaries, a perspective that has gained her admiration and recognition from diverse individuals.

"When there's a disaster and people are in need, we're all Americans," Oklahoma's Republican Governor Kevin Stitt said to CNN following his joint appearance with Criswell at a press conference. "And that's, I think, the administrator's attitude. These are federal agencies that we have to work with regardless of who's in the White House."

Criswell agrees.

"This partnership is incredibly crucial to ensure we bring in the proper people to fulfill the needs of these communities," she said.

As she shook the governor's hand, she added, "We will keep in touch – you have my number."

Centering People

At FEMA's headquarters in Washington, DC, the agency's slogan is clearly visible on the wall: "Helping people before, during, and after disasters."

Deanne Criswell while deployed overseas with the Colorado Air National Guard.

This mission resonates with Criswell. Joining the position, she aimed "to make sure that we prioritized people."

As a Former city emergency management director, Criswell was well-aware of FEMA's notoriously complex procedures and confusing relief programs, which made it more difficult for people in need to receive assistance.

"We are an agency that deals with risk every day—that's the essence of what we do," she says. "However, when it comes to our policies, we can occasionally be more risk-averse. I aimed to deviate from that. I wanted us to truly grasp what it means to prioritize people."

Her strategy? To listen.

"I went to different disaster areas and listened to our staff, listened to governors, and listened to those affected firsthand about the obstacles they faced," Criswell explained. "We could then address these challenges by implementing changes."

The result was significant reforms to FEMA's disaster assistance programs that were last amended two decades ago.

The alterations, which commenced in March, consist of:

Immediately providing disaster victims with $750 to cover emergency costs and fundamental household requirements.
Granting individuals displaced by disasters funding up front to facilitate greater flexibility in finding temporary housing.
Expanding FEMA eligibility for help and simplifying the appeals process.
Eliminating a requirement for survivors to apply for a Small Business Administration loan before they could apply for FEMA financial assistance; they can now seek both simultaneously.
Streamlining regulations to permit victims to receive up to $42,500 in FEMA assistance to cover expenses that weren't reimbursed by insurance providers.
Permitting FEMA to carry out repairs to damaged homes regardless of their previous condition and enabling survivors with disabilities to utilize FEMA funds to make their homes more accessible.

Criswell believes these alterations will significantly improve FEMA's performance on the ground.

"We can actually assist people during their road to recovery in a way that is reasonable, rather than being so limited by some of the regulations that we possess," she said.

This emphasis on aiding people extends beyond her team as well. Recognizing the toll that dealing with a constant succession of natural disasters could take on her staff's mental health, Criswell introduced a "wellness room" close to FEMA's nerve center—complete with cozy chairs and a calming camera view of birds at a bird feeder.

"This is a spot where they can come take a break," she said. "We mustn't just provide support, but also give our employees the authorization to recognize when they need a pause."

In her team, she's referred to as 'Administrator Criswell,' but in her family, she has a different nickname.

"I'm affectionately referred to as 'Grandma Cookie,'" she confessed.

Despite her career filled with rigorous assignments, Criswell has always maintained her role as a mother to two grown sons and grandmother of three. It hasn't been easy, with frequent deployments and constant travel to various disaster sites. Nevertheless, when Criswell had her confirmation hearing in Congress, her sons were present.

"When they were with me that day and you could see how proud they were and how successful they have both become," she shared, "it truly gave me a warm, maternal feeling."