Pamela Berkowsky served as chief of staff and deputy chief of staff for U.S. Virgin Islands Governor John P. de Jongh, Jr. During her tenure, Ms. Berkowsky managed a Government House staff of 125 located on three islands and was responsible for policy initiatives related to emergency preparedness and response, public safety, education and health reform, and international programs. Her career in public policy dates back to the late 1980s. Here, Ms. Berkowsky offers background on the creation of the military’s Joint Task Force - Civil Support and the National Guard Civil Support Teams, an initiative that she lead and championed as the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Civil Support. In the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and the sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo subway, Pamela Berkowsky lead an effort to restructure and refocus the Pentagon’s provision of support to civil authorities in the wake of potential terrorist attacks on the homeland. Specially trained military units were established specifically to provide support to civil authorities in the event of a domestic terrorist incident involving weapons of mass destruction. It also involved the provision of enhanced communications support and training to more than 20,000 first responders across federal, state, and local departments by 2003.
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AuthorA resident of the U.S. Virgin Islands since 2002, Pamela B. Berkowsky took her most recent governmental management role in 2007, becoming Deputy Chief of Staff to Gov. John de Jongh Jr. Thriving in this position, in which she managed daily Government House and Cabinet operations and policy development and implementation, she was promoted to Chief of Staff in 2011. Archives
September 2020
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