James A. “Jim” Slick serves as the Director of the Etowah County Emergency Management Agency (EMA), where he leads the county’s comprehensive emergency management program, overseeing preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery efforts while fostering collaboration among municipal, county, state, and federal partners. As the inaugural director of the newly established Etowah County EMA in 2025, he has been instrumental in building the agency from the ground up, developing operational policies, coordinating regional training initiatives, strengthening interagency partnerships, and enhancing the county’s overall emergency preparedness capabilities.
With nearly four decades of public safety and emergency management experience, Director Slick has built an exceptional career in fire protection, emergency medical services, hazardous materials response, CBRNE (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives) preparedness, emergency communications, and emergency management. His career began in 1987 as a firefighter and paramedic and has included leadership positions with the Anniston Army Depot, Oxford Fire Department, Oxford Emergency Medical Services, and Leidos at the Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP) in Anniston. Throughout his career, he has served as a firefighter, paramedic, fire protection specialist, training officer, course manager, and ultimately COBRA Training Facility Task Manager, where he directed one of the nation’s premier hazardous materials and CBRNE training programs for emergency responders.
During his tenure at the Center for Domestic Preparedness, Director Slick provided executive leadership for the COBRA Training Facility, overseeing instructional staff, curriculum development, quality assurance, instructor certification, strategic planning, and operational safety while ensuring the delivery of nationally recognized CBRNE and hazardous materials training programs. Prior to that role, he spent more than two decades at Anniston Army Depot, where he served in progressively responsible positions as Firefighter/EMT, Firefighter/Paramedic, Fire Protection Specialist, and Supervisory Fire Protection Specialist/Training Officer. In those roles, he managed fire protection programs, emergency communications, hazardous materials response, weapons of mass destruction preparedness, emergency medical services, and specialized training for military and civilian responders.
Director Slick holds a Bachelor of Science in Fire Science from Columbia Southern University and is a Nationally Registered Paramedic. He possesses an extensive portfolio of professional certifications in emergency management, fire service leadership, hazardous materials response, incident command, emergency medical instruction, and homeland security, including numerous FEMA Incident Command System and National Incident Management System certifications. He is also certified as an instructor in Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Basic Trauma Life Support (BTLS), and American Heart Association CPR programs.
Throughout his distinguished career, Director Slick has received numerous awards recognizing his leadership and dedication to public service, including being named the Department of Defense Army Materiel Command Fire Officer of the Year in 2012. His career has also been recognized through multiple Fire Prevention Program of the Year awards, exceptional performance ratings, lifesaving awards, and leadership appointments that reflect his longstanding commitment to excellence in emergency services.
As Director of the Etowah County Emergency Management Agency, Jim Slick remains committed to strengthening community resilience through comprehensive planning, professional training, interagency coordination, and proactive emergency preparedness initiatives. His leadership is guided by a lifelong commitment to public service and ensuring the citizens of Etowah County are prepared to respond to, withstand, and recover from emergencies and disasters of every kind.
