Emergency Management Disaster Science

Dr. Josh Durkee joined the Department in Fall 2008 after completing his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. He is a Professor of Meteorology and Disaster Science with research and operational expertise in precipitation science, applications in meteorological monitoring and forecasting for hyperlocal high-profile events, venues, and projects, and specializes in severe and disruptive weather forecasting and decision-support.

In addition to his role as Vice Chair of EEAS, Dr. Durkee serves as Director of the Disaster Science Operations Center and Professional Services (DSOC/DSOC Pro), Director of the WKU Consortium of Disaster Science & Management, and the Program Coordinator for the Emergency Management Disaster Science (EMDS) undergraduate/graduate Certificate Programs and M.S. Homeland Security Science-EMDS Program. He also serves as Director of the campus weather service, White Squirrel Weather and the College Heights Atmospheric Observatory for Students (CHAOS) and is appointed as the University Meteorologist for WKU. Dr. Durkee teaches upper-division courses on weather analysis and forecasting, synoptic and mesoscale meteorology, remote sensing for the atmospheric sciences, and graduate-level disaster science. He is also a certified FEMA instructor for Incident Command System (ICS) courses.

Dr. Durkee’s expertise are recognized via national and global services, partnerships, and awards including, the Chicago Event Management Marathon Series, FIFA, Beam Suntory, Country Music Association Festival, National Cherry Blossom events, World Culture Festival, NASCAR, Special Olympics USA Games, Boys and Girls Clubs of America, the FBI, Conference USA D1 Athletics, Kentucky Academy of Science, National Weather Association, along with other concert entertainment and global industry providers.