Drexel Experts Available to Comment on September 11 Ten Years After the Attacks

Drexel University experts are available to assist the news media in its coverage of the ten-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Experts include:

Medical Readiness and Counter-Terrorism
Dr. Curtis Cummings, professor of environmental and occupational health in the School of Public Health, is a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Navy Medical Corps and the U.S. Public Health Service.  His research focuses on toxicology of heavy metals, emergency preparednesss and medical readiness and counter-terrorism.

Emergency Preparedness and Planning
Dr. Esther Chernak is a professor and director of the Center for Public Health Readiness & Communication in the School of Public Health.  She previously served as the head of Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health.  Chernak can speak on all aspects of a city and country planning for terrorist attacks and other disasters, including surveillance programs, health alert networks and communications to vulnerable populations.

Bioterrorism                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Dr. Charles Haas is a professor of environmental engineering and the head of the Department of Civil, Architectural & Envinronmental Engineering at the College of Engineering. He is the local co-director of an Environmental Protection Agency/Department of Homeland Security center and has written extensively in the areas of bioterrorism and risk assessment. Haas commented for several stories following the anthrax incidents in the years following the Sept. 11 attacks. Hass can speak about various aspects of biological terrorism threats to people and the environment and how to help negate those threats. 

Homeland Security
Benn Prybutok, an adjunct associate professor of Homeland Security in the Goodwin College’s School of Technology & Professional Studies, is available to comment on the history and psycho-social dimensions of international and domestic terrorism, including socialization, radicalization and recruitment processes, so-called 'lone-wolves,' and the impact of terrorism on target populations.

The Psychology of Terrorists
Dr. Eric Zillmer, a professor of neuropsychology, is the author of the book Military Psychology: Clinical and Operational Application. The book, co-authored by Carrie Kennedy, a lieutenant commander and neuropsychologist in the U.S. Navy, addresses combat stress, consulting for survival training and hostage negotiation, understanding terrorist motivation and assessing high-risk operational personnel.

Disaster Policy
Dr. Scott Knowles, associate professor of history in the College of Arts and Sciences, is the author of The Disaster Experts: Mastering Risk in Modern America. In the wake of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, the book traces the intertwined histories of disaster experts—specialists in predicting the unpredictable and managing the unmanageable—revealing how their interdisciplinary research and practices over the past century have shaped modern America. Knowles is available to comment on American disaster policy and disaster history, as well as current natural and technological disasters.

Media Coverage
Karen Curry was the former vice president and New York bureau chief for CNN, where she directed the bureau's newsgathering efforts and was responsible for the production needs of CNN programs based in New York. Curry ran the bureau's coverage of 9/11 and its aftermath, including serving the needs of several new shows that were launched in the midst of the coverage. She currently serves as Executive Director of the Kal & Lucille Rudman Institute for Entertainment Industry Studies at Drexel University.


News media contacts:
Rachel Ewing, News Officer, Office of University Communications (covering public health and science)
215-895-2614, 215-298-4600 (cell), raewing@drexel.edu
Alex McKechnie, News Officer, Office of University Communications (covering history, psychology and other areas)
215-895-2705, 401-651-7550 (cell), amckechnie@drexel.edu