Disaster Subject Matter Expert
Sara Hicks-West is the Disaster Subject Matter Expert for technical assistance to both natural disasters and public health emergencies affecting persons experiencing homelessness.
Ms. Hicks-West came to Cloudburst after serving families impacted by disasters with the American Red Cross for over 15 years. Ms. Hicks-West was most recently assigned as the Community Recovery Executive directing the Hurricanes Florence, Michael, Dorian and the 2020 Western Wildfires Long Term Recovery Operations. Ms. Hicks-West also served in numerous leadership roles on disaster response operations including Hurricane’s Harvey, Irma and Florence, where she engaged with HUD TA ensuring resources for sustainable housing solutions were available and equitable treatment of survivors, including those experiencing homelessness prior to the the disaster.
Ms. Hicks-West holds a master’s degree in Psychology from the University of West Georgia. Prior to her work in disaster response, Ms. Hicks-West earned a bachelor’s of art degree in Applied Criminology and worked in the corrections system with juvenile offenders.