History of The Warn Room
When the Warn Room launched in 2023, my lab at the University at Albany was one year into a research effort funded by FEMA-IPAWS to help improve Wireless Emergency Alerts. As we meticulously coded and analyzed a decade of WEAs and prepared to conduct experimental research to support the Warning Lexicon and the Message Design Dashboard it became apparent that the lessons we were learning along the way could be shared immediately.
I started this webpage as a blog to share how we were applying 70 years of social science research to alert and warning messages.
More than 150 posts, and two years later, The Warn Room has now evolved to provide that same application of science through advising, consulting, and training, working with clients around the world to improve their messaging and results.
Meet Dr. Jeannette Sutton
I’m a social scientist with a passion for bringing evidence-based guidance to the alert and warning community. I began my career in as a chaplain and advocate in medical trauma centers and domestic violence shelters before being called to assist with victim recovery following the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. It was there that I recognized I was better suited to studying than responding to mass casualty incidents and returned to school. Living in Louisville, Colorado, it was natural to apply to and receive my PhD from the University of Colorado, Boulder where my mentor, Dr. Dennis Mileti directed the Natural Hazard Center and chaired the Sociology department.
Since 2000, I have investigated the social aspects of disasters with a focus on emerging technologies for communication. In 2012, after participating in a series of workshops hosted by the National Academy of Sciences, I joined a research team to study the Commercial Mobile Alert System, later known as Wireless Emergency Alerts, which laid a path to where I am today.
As I moved from Boulder, Colorado, to the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, then the University of Kentucky, and finally the University at Albany, my focus has always been to conduct theoretically grounded and methodologically rigorous research that serves as a bridge between academics and practice. I have received funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the US Geological Survey, the US Department of Homeland Security, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Now, as the founder of the Warn Room, I provide consulting and advice, research, and training to emergency management and public safety officials across a range of response sectors. I have helped local, state, and federal agencies domestically and internationally, plus non-profit and private sector organizations, to improve their messages and give them the tools and techniques to be prepared for the next hazardous event.