A.J. Schall Jr. became the Director of the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) in 2015 and in 2020 was also named the Governor’s Homeland Security Advisor. Schall brings a background in public safety to the agency, complementing it with emergency management and corporate experience.

Director Schall graduated from Marmion Military Academy in Aurora, Illinois, and then attended St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa. He was Student Government President and in 1998 received a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance.

Upon graduation, Director Schall began his professional career with Bank of America, where he completed a rigorous management development program. He held multiple positions, negotiated key contracts, and has nearly two decades of experience in upper level management.

Director Schall has also been actively engaged in the front lines of emergency response, serving as the Chief of the Aetna Hose, Hook and Ladder Company (Newark, DE), and currently is Deputy Chief.

Since becoming Director, DEMA has facilitated multiple State of Emergencies, FEMA Graded Exercises and launched an UAV program. Notable accomplishments of 2019 are revitalization of the Mitigation Program and the Agency’s first Accreditation through the
Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP).

Over the years Director Schall continues his professional development, completing the US Army War College Commandant’s National Security Program in 2016, and most recently the Naval Post Graduate School Executive Leaders Program. In the winter of 2020, Schall
began as an adjunct professor at the University of Delaware.