Nicholas DeJesse, MS

Nicholas DeJesse is the current Director of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Philadelphia Office.  In 1996, Nicholas started his Federal career with OSHA as a compliance safety and health officer responsible for inspecting and investigating various industries including petro/chemical, construction, manufacturing, and maritime establishments.  In 2004, Nicholas left the realm of enforcement to pursue various compliance assistance programs such as voluntary protection, grants, and emergency preparedness and response.  In this position Nicholas developed and implemented a comprehensive emergency management program geared toward training and educating government agencies, response organizations, and private sector in risk assessment and risk management issues for first responders, first receivers, and skilled-support personnel.  

In 2007 Nicholas was hired by the Department of Health and Human Services/Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response as a regional emergency coordinator where he was responsible for regional preparedness efforts including seamless integration of public health and medical resources during public health and federally-declared emergencies.  In addition, Nicholas was the lead public health and medical planner for several National Special Security Events (NSSEs) including the 2008 Presidential Inauguration and 2009 G-20 Summit.  In 2010 Nicholas accepted a position with the Department of Homeland Security/Federal Emergency Management Agency where he was responsible for all preparedness activities for Region III.  In this position, Nicholas developed and implemented various workgroups and task forces geared at improving preparedness planning and emergency response at the Federal, State, and Local levels.  He also developed and implemented a standardized method for quantifying and qualifying risk from terror events, man-made issues, and natural disasters.  This methodology was adopted by the Headquarters level and used as a model for State and Local jurisdictions.  In 2012, Nicholas returned to OSHA to once again ensure the health, safety, and well-being of employees working in the jurisdiction.  He has led or assisted numerous team inspections of facilities with highly-hazardous chemicals and other high profile events including the 2012 building collapse at the Salvation Army.  Nicholas was deployed to over twenty (20) Federally-declared emergencies with his first being to New York City following the World Trade Center attacks.  Nicholas has a Master’s degree in Science from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and has been teaching or advising students in their graduate program for several years.