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2007 National Campus Security Summit
Speaker Profiles
Donald
P. Bliss
Director, National Infrastructure
Institute's Center for
Infrastructure Expertise
 Donald P. Bliss is the Director
of the National Infrastructure
Institute's Center for
Infrastructure Expertise. The NI2
Center for Infrastructure Expertise
is an independent nonprofit
organization dedicated to improving
the management and protection of
buildings and facilities in the
United States. The Center is
currently focused on addressing
urgent critical infrastructure
protection issues related to
homeland security.
Mr. Bliss served as the New
Hampshire State Fire Marshal from
August 1992 until November 2003. As
state fire marshal, Mr. Bliss
oversaw fire investigations and the
enforcement of the state's fire and
building codes. In addition, he
administered the state's modular
building program, the statewide fire
incident reporting system and
coordinated the state's response to
hazardous materials incidents. In
the wake of the tragic events of
September 11, 2001, Mr. Bliss took
over responsibility for New
Hampshire's emergency management and
homeland security efforts. He
chaired the Governor's Commission on
Preparedness and Security, and
transitioned the Governor's Office
of Emergency Management to the newly
formed Division of Fire Safety &
Emergency Management within the NH
Department of Safety. He also served
as homeland security advisor to both
Governor Jeanne Shaheen and Governor
Craig Benson.
From 1983 to 1992, Mr. Bliss served
as the fire chief in Salem, New
Hampshire. From 1989 to 1992, he
served as both fire chief and the
town's emergency management
director. In 1990, Mr. Bliss served
as interim town manager for nine
months. From 1980 to 1983, Mr. Bliss
served as the director of the
University of Connecticut Fire
Department and as fire marshal for
the University of Connecticut
system. Mr. Bliss began his career
with the Durham-UNH Fire Department
in 1970, rising from call
firefighter to fire marshal/deputy
chief.
Mr. Bliss has served in leadership
roles in numerous professional
organizations, including National
Association of State Fire Marshals,
the National Fire Protection
Association, and the New Hampshire
Association of Fire Chiefs. He is a
past president of the New Hampshire
Association of Fire Chiefs and a
former chair of the New Hampshire
Emergency Medical Services
Coordinating Board. He served as
President of the National
Association of State Fire Marshals
and chair of the association's
Consumer Product Safety Task Force,
and as chair of the International
Fire Code Prescriptive Drafting
Committee. Mr. Bliss chaired the
National Fire Protection
Association's (NFPA) Uniform Fire
Prevention Code Technical Committee
and currently serves on the NFPA
board of directors. He chairs the
National Electrical Code panel on
homeland security and mission
critical facilities, and serves on
the NFPA Technical Committee on
Emergency Management and Business
Continuity and the NFPA Technical
Committee on Cultural Resources.
Mr. Bliss received a Bachelor of
Arts in political science from the
University of New Hampshire in 1973
and he received a Master of Public
Administration degree, also from the
University of New Hampshire, in
1979. He has completed numerous
courses at the National Fire Academy
in Emmetsburg, Maryland.
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