Laura Kavanagh, 40, is the 34th Fire Commissioner of the

New York City Fire Department The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), is an American department of the government of New York City that provides fire protection services, technical rescue/special operations services, ...

(FDNY), the first woman to hold the position. Appointed by mayor

Eric Adams Eric Leroy Adams (born September 1, 1960) is an American politician and retired police captain serving as the 110th mayor of New York City since January 1, 2022. Adams was an officer in the New York City Transit Police and then the New York C ...

on October 27, 2022, Kavanagh is credited with diversifying the FDNY applicant pool, including graduating the largest group of women in nearly three decades. As Fire Commissioner, Kavanagh oversees the day-to-day operations of the largest fire department in the country with more than 17,000 employees and a $2 billion dollar budget. Prior to her appointment as Fire Commissioner, Kavanagh had already spent several years at the FDNY, acting as a key leader in the agency's response to major incidents including the Ebola outbreak of 2015 and the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

Early life

Kavanagh grew up near San Francisco, the only child of a public school teacher and a telephone company worker. From an early age, Kavanagh became interested in public service. Upon graduation from Whittier College in California with a BA in Political Science and International Relations, she describes buying a one-way ticket to New York City and falling in love with the city, living in all five boroughs as she worked on managing and campaign consulting for non-profits, community-based organizations and unions. She earned a Master's Degree in Public Administration from Columbia University's School for International and Public Affairs. Kavanagh is also an alumnus of the Executive Leaders Program at the Naval Post Graduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security, and the Stanford Graduate School of Business’ Summer Institute.

Career

Kavanagh has held senior roles on Presidential, Mayoral, Congressional and local campaigns. She was a Special Assistant to Mayor

Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who served as the 109th mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he held the office of New Yor ...

, and during the

2012 United States presidential election The 2012 United States presidential election was the 57th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. Incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, incumbent Vice President Joe Biden, were re-el ...

, she served as Deputy Director in Pennsylvania on

Barack Obama's Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

reelection campaign. She joined the FDNY in 2014, first as Director of External Affairs in 2014 before her promotion as Assistant Commissioner for External Affairs several months later. In 2015, she was appointed Deputy Commissioner for Government Affairs and Special Programs, became First Deputy Commissioner in 2017 and served as acting Fire Commissioner in February of 2022 after the retirement of Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro. An avid runner, Commissioner Kavanagh has completed two New York City Marathons and is a regular participant in the stair climbs that honor fallen first responders and their families.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kavanagh, Laura Commissioners of the New York City Fire Department Living people Whittier College alumni School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University alumni Women in New York (state) politics 1982 births