Meet SRDRS's Excecutive Director

As Director and Associate Professor at the University of Georgia’s Institute for Disaster Management (IDM) and Executive Director of the Southern Regional Disaster Response System, Dr. Curtis Harris leads educational initiatives and coordinates research and outreach efforts across academic and governmental sectors. His expertise lies in disaster management and public health preparedness, focusing on how planning, policy, and training influence outcomes during crises. Over his career, Dr. Harris has secured and managed over $40 million in extramural funding to advance healthcare preparedness, infectious disease training, and long-term care resiliency.

Dr. Harris has led numerous large-scale, federally and state-funded projects that have shaped public health preparedness across Georgia, the United States, and internationally. With prior experience as an Emergency Preparedness Manager and faculty member in Health Policy and Management, he has developed nationally and internationally recognized frameworks for healthcare coalition building, emergency communication, and workforce development. Dr. Harris’s leadership integrates evidence-based research with community-centered collaboration to strengthen disaster resilience systems.