The PIO Podcast

Send us Fan Mail

Nicole's BIO
Ms. Nicole Shutts has been with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for 12 years. She currently serves as a Training Specialist in the Emergency Management Professional Program (EMPP) Branch at Emergency Management Institute (EMI). She manages the Public Information Officer Program which portfolio consists of the Advanced Public Information Officer (APIO) training and exercise course and the Master Public Information Officer Program (MPIO). During her 4 years with the program, she has successfully managed the PIO training of over 700 federal, local, state, tribal and territorial public information officers across the country. Previously, Ms. Shutts managed FEMA’s Surge Capacity Force training, Human Resources and Financial Management courses, as well as the FEMA Corps Basic and position specific training courses.

Furthermore, she managed FEMA’s Emergency Manager Orientation and was responsible for providing the information and tools needed for over 2000 new employees to be successful within the FEMA, and to support the FEMA mission and disaster survivors. Prior to joining FEMA, Ms. Shutts spent 10 years with Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) in various capacities. She served as the Administrative Computer Specialist for LCPS where she planned, designed, and developed training. In addition, she facilitated and delivered computer software training for internal and external administrative staff and conducted computer training programs for the Department for Personnel Services.

Nicole's Email: [email protected]

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Season: 3 - Episode: 15

John Guilfoil is a former Boston Globe staff reporter who served as deputy press secretary to the late former Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino. He is the founder of JGPR, a public relations agency created in 2013 to strengthen communications strategy for police and fire departments.

Since its founding, the company has expanded to include school districts, public health agencies, public works, state/county agencies and whole municipal governments, as well as non-profits and business clients.

John has been recognized nationally for his public affairs and crisis management work, and he has conducted public relations and media relations training for clients in more than 40 states.

In 2015 and 2016, John was named the National Public Affairs Professional of the Year by the public relations trade association PR News. The same organization also named him the 2016 National Crisis Manager of the Year.

In 2017, he was named one of the 50 national Game Changers of Public Relations by PR News.

He has bachelor’s degrees in journalism and criminal justice from Northeastern University and a master’s degree in journalism from Emerson College.

He has been a guest lecturer at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Season: 3 - Episode: 14

Sarah talks about something we do not frequently talk about Line of Duty Deaths.


Sarah's BIO:
Sarah Campbell has over 10 years of experience working in the Fire Service as a Civilian, with 5 years at Frederick County Division of Fire and Rescue Services. Sarah began her journey in the Fire Service as an HR professional for Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue where she lead recruitment, retention, branding, promotional processes, CBA implementation, discipline, and HRIS systems. She joined Frederick County Fire and Rescue in 2018 as a Personnel Analyst, and when the Division asked her to step in and assist them with being their spokesperson she quickly found a passion for the Public Information field. She currently works in both capacities as the Manager, Communications, and Administration.  In the past 5 years, she has assisted in the expansion of FCDFRS from 400 uniformed career personnel to over 600. She has served as the Lead PIO for 5 LODD’s that impacted her agency, numerous emergency incidents, and developing their mark on several social media platforms. She looks forward to expanding her section to include more Human Resources professionals so that she can continue her education and focus on the Public Information Officer role.



Sarah holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications with a minor in Public Relations from Hood College. She has also completed the Emergency Management Institute Advanced PIO course and is excited to pursue further certifications. Sarah resides in Frederick County with her husband and kids, and avid 4-H members.

Email: [email protected]

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Season: 3 - Episode: 13
Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses and governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. His goal is to enhance everyone’s disaster resilience.

Eric is a prolific writer, expert facilitator, and a frequent commentator on news events of the day, where he advocates for investing in disaster resilience in all its forms. He delivers informative, humorous, and engaging presentations on a wide range of topics related to disasters to diverse audiences that include public and private sector associations and conferences.

Additionally, he and his team of associates are ready and available to provide consulting services to various public, private, and nonprofit clients. These services include all phases of disaster planning, training, and disaster exercises.

Two examples of his experience, knowledge, and impact on emergency management have been his opinion pieces written for local and national media outlets as exemplified in his Washington Post Op-ed “Destroying FEMA”, and his being selected as one of Government Technology’s Top 25 Doers and Dreamers List

Eric looks forward to serving your needs. Please take time to explore the many aspects of his expertise by exploring the different elements of this website.

Eric's Email Address - [email protected]

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Mikayla Moskov is a FEMA and FBI-LEEDA certified Master Public information Officer with a background in broadcast journalism serving one of the fastest-growing places in the United States. 

A strategic communicator focused on supporting and building internal audiences up to become external brand advocates and agents for good.

Between a Master's in Criminal Justice and Communications (gig 'em, Aggies), and years of experience managing incidents ranging from international spy balloons to floodwater cow rescues, MPIO Moskov offers insight into the civilian side of law enforcement communications, consolidated public information practices, and the partnerships that make it all possible. 

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Commander Matthew Kroll, U.S. Coast Guard

 Matthew currently serves as the Chief of Media Relations and is the primary 

spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard. He has more than 18 years of operational and public relations experience in the military. Originally from Southern California, Matthew received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications Studies from Sonoma State University and a Master of Arts in Communications from San Diego State University. 

He began his professional career as a radio broadcaster before enlisting in the Coast Guard. Shortly after joining, Matthew was selected for Officer Candidate School, received his “wings of gold”, and flew the MH-65 “Dolphin” helicopter as aircraft commander and instructor pilot. He served as the unit public affairs officer at Air Station San Francisco and Air Station Atlantic city before being selected for the Coast Guard’s public affairs advanced education program. Upon completion of his graduate degree, Matthew managed all external communications for the Eleventh Coast Guard District, which includes the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah, as well as all rescue and counter-narcotics operations in the international waters of the Pacific Ocean off Central and South America.

            Specializing in crisis communications, he led public information teams for multiple national-level incidents including Hurricane Harvey in Texas, Hurricane Lane in Hawaii, and the Conception Dive Boat fire in California. An expert on Coast Guard public affairs history, Matthew researched and published multiple articles documenting the service’s notable communicators and overall public relations program.

            Matthew holds a Public Information Officer (PIO) qualification for type-I incidents (highest level), is an adjunct communications professor, and has been recognized with multiple awards from the Coast Guard.

Commander Kroll's book  - Public Relations in the Military
Commander Kroll's LinkedIn

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Alexandra Farkas is the Public Information Officer for the Cheyenne Police Department. She is responsible for developing, coordinating, and implementing communication strategies between residents, businesses, the media, and the police department regarding a variety of projects and initiatives which align with the department’s strategic priorities.

Farkas’s professional experience includes areas of digital media, marketing strategy and communications, graphic design, cyber security, data analytics, and event planning.

Prior to the Cheyenne Police Department, Farkas served as the Director of Marketing and Communication for the Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce. Farkas earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Marketing from the University of Wyoming.

Website: Cheyenne Police Department
Alexandra's Email: [email protected]g

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Jesica Lopez-Huskey is an experienced marketing and communication professional passionate about working within public safety. She leverages her creativity honed from working within Hollywood’s most iconic brands DreamWorks, DreamWorks Animation, and Marvel Studios, for storytelling on behalf of private security firms to police agencies.

Her career in law enforcement agencies began by accident in 2016. Chief of Police Joe Monroe of the University of Kentucky Police Department (UKPD) sought to fill one vacant position but found two qualified applicants. By sheer luck, a new role was created. Lopez-Huskey became the agency's first Senior Marketing/Promotions Specialist, which changed her career trajectory.

For more than four years, Lopez-Huskey successfully elevated the image, brand, reputation, and perception of the largest university police department in the state. She reorganized and re-branded departmental websites for greater transparency. Most notably, she built an informed and highly engaged audience on social media. Her engaging articles, humorous crime tips, and safety videos often became a source of local news stories, to the extent that a video of two officers rescuing a baby duckling from a storm drain reached 189,000 views on Facebook. Notwithstanding, the story was shared on Fox News and distributed across seven international news outlets from England to Scotland.

Through her involvement with UKPD, she was invited to chronicle the history of the departmental motor unit, published in the Harley-Davidson Motor magazine. A thought leader, Lopez-Huskey, spoke on law enforcement utilization of social media at the Southern Association of College & University Business Officers, College Business Management Institute (CBMI).

In addition to her efforts on behalf of policing, she volunteered on the Board of The Girl Project Arts Initiative. She was an advisor for Natalie’s Sisters, a Community outreach program in partnership with the Lexington, Kentucky Police Department. She also received awards for her contributions to public safety, including the Staff Senate Award and peer-recognized Support Employee of the Year award.

Most recently, as Safety Communications Manager at the University of Chicago, she led efforts to build public engagement and awareness on safety issues by refining and implementing the University’s safety communications strategy, re-organizing the Department of Public Safety website, and create safety-related content.


Originally from Los Angeles, California, Lopez-Huskey is a native Spanish speaker. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from Claremont McKenna College and resides in Chicagoland with her husband and two sons. In her spare time, she likes to meet new people, read fiction, and listen to NPR podcasts.

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD)Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD)
15 yrs 
Public Affairs (Media Relations) Supervisor -  Lieutenant

Supervise a team of officers who are responsible for promoting the agency both internally and externally through a variety of methods including interviews, press releases, social media and direct interpersonal communication.Supervise a team of officers who are responsible for promoting the agency both internally and externally through a variety of methods including interviews, press releases, social media and direct interpersonal communication.

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.

Send us Fan Mail

 Michelle Marcomb became the Media and Marketing Coordinator/Public Information Officer for the Rockford Police Department in February 2020. She’s responsible for media relations, crisis communication, and issues management, along with the agency’s videos, social media, and digital content.

 Michelle got her start in media as the Sales Assistant for a cluster of radio stations in Rockford, Illinois. Very quickly, she moved into Promotions and then did a 3-year stint as a co-host on a morning radio program on B103-FM. Following that, she headed over to the TV side and produced and co-hosted “Good Day Stateline”, a weekly lifestyle show on WTVO, the local ABC affiliate.

She jumped to the “other side of the news” in 2020 when she became a public information officer for one of the busiest municipal police department’s in the State of Illinois.

Michelle is the mom of two amazing kids - Davin, a 2020 William Woods University graduate, and Avery, who lives her best life as a freshman at Loyola University Chicago. She’s also the mom of an 11-year-old Shih-Tzu named Scooby, who, truth be told, really runs the show.

Support the show

Our premiere sponsor, Social News Desk, has an exclusive offer for PIO Podcast listeners. Head over to socialnewsdesk.com/pio to get three months free when a qualifying agency signs up.