January 24, 2019 : : 11:30am-1pm
Disaster Recovery & Good Samaritan Legislation
featuring
J. Scott Eddy, AIA, 2019 AIA National Disaster Assistance Committee Chair

and special guests

Rep. Cory Wilson
Mississippi House District 73 (Madison)
2019 Good Samaritan Bill Sponsor

Curnis Upkins, III
Director of Business Development
Hinds County Economic Development Authority

John Cothron
Executive Director
Mississippi State Board of Architecture

Jordan Rae Hillman, AICP
Deputy Director of Planning
City of Jackson, MS
Department of Planning & Development

Joel Waters
Executive Director
Mississippi Concrete Association

Albert’s at Parlor Market | 119 W Capitol Street | Jackson, MS

NEW TIME: 11:00am Doors open, lunch orders begin | 11:30am-12:30pm Programming
1 LU/HSW | $20 | Register at PayPal (include attendees’ names in comments)
View the event on Facebook | Download the flyer

Learn about the critical role every architect and associate can play when Mississippi encounters its next major natural disaster as well as ways you can use your voice to help AIA Mississippi achieve legislation that protects volunteers when they contribute their knowledge and service.

Following the devastation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Scott served as a volunteer making several trips to the affected areas to preform building damage assessments.  Since that time, Scott has become a CalOES certified SAP Evaluator and CalOES SAP Trainer.  He has served as the AIA/Mississippi Disaster Assistance Committee state coordinator for eight years and was appointed to AIA National’s Disaster Assistance Committee in 2017, serving as Vice-Chair in 2018.  In December of 2018, he was appointed Chair of the Disaster Assistance Committee.

Scott has instructed architects, engineers and building officials in the CalOES SAP Training program in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, New York and Florida.  These sessions have increased the number of SAP trained evaluators that are able to assist those in need following a declared disaster.  He has also served on panel discussions regarding disaster preparedness at the CACE conference in Philadelphia, PA and A’17 in Orlando, FL.

Mississippi is the only state in the southeast and one of only a few nationwide that lack a Good Samaritan law protecting architects and engineers from liability when volunteering to provide safety assessments following a declared disaster at the request of the State or authority having jurisdiction.  Scott is in support of a Good Samaritan law that would better enable us to respond in the next disaster.

Read more about Scott in this January 2018 article from Architect Magazine by Steve Cimino, “How architects can help communities recover from disasters (and save millions of dollars).”  Read more about the issue on the AIA Mississippi Advocacy page.

Special thanks to our sponsor, Mississippi Concrete Association.

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