Emergency prevention and preparedness: Meet Harrison Hill

Tuesday, September 23, 2025

Media Contact: Aaron Campbell | OSU-Tulsa Communications Coordinator | 918-899-4960 | aaron.ross.campbell@okstate.edu

Is your department prepared for an emergency? Do you know what to do in the case of a tornado, fire or earthquake? How about a bomb threat or an active shooter?

Luckily, there is a team for that — and in Tulsa, it's Associate Emergency Manager Harrison Hill.

Hill works out of the OSU-Tulsa Police office in Main Hall, helping departments prevent and prepare for emergencies across multiple campuses and clinics in the Tulsa area, including OSU-Tulsa, OSU Medicine clinics, OSU Center for Health Sciences and the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine in Tahlequah.

“The role of emergency management is really to support prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery efforts,” Hill said. “When an emergency hits, we want things to go as smoothly as possible and work out as best as they can.”

For Hill’s position, that can mean everything from planning large events to working on emergency plans for daily operations and providing training resources.

Hill has a background in communications, graduating with an OSU bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications and then starting his career with OSU Brand Management in 2019, supporting communications for the Vice President for Research’s office and then for OSU Enterprise Information Technology, working closely with the crisis communications team. His experience helps inform his approach to emergency management.

“It’s been an interesting path to get here,” Hill said. “What’s nice about my career path is I can take the things I’ve learned in emergency management and communicate those well to other people, helping me work with campus leadership as well as training people.”

Education and preparedness are central to Hill’s philosophy.

“Be educated. It really comes down to knowing what to do before something happens,” he said. “When you feel like you don’t know how to do something, that’s a great time to reach out to us. The more educated you are, the more ready you are, then the better your emergency response will be.”

Hill encourages Tulsa-based departments to reach out if they have questions about preparing for an emergency or want to create a tailored emergency plan for a specific group or scenario.

“My role is all about coordination and partnership,” he said. “I want people to know that emergency management is here to work with them and to help them with what they need. We’re really wanting to continue to grow those partnerships and help people be prepared.”

For more information or to access emergency preparedness resources, visit safety.okstate.edu or contact Hill directly at harrison.c.hill@okstate.edu.