Jonathan Francisco, a graduate of the online MS in Emergency Management program, was awarded USC’s Order of Arête, honoring his excellence inside and outside the classroom.
As a paramedic and fire captain with a young family, Jonathan Francisco did not take the decision to return to school for a graduate degree lightly. Despite these constraints, the USC Bovard College graduate demonstrated a commitment to leadership and excellence honored with the Order of Arête at commencement.
Francisco chose to pursue a master’s degree in emergency management to build on his 15-year career as a first responder. During his two years in the program, he found both a community that supported him and the resources to take his skills to the next level.
A Career Built on Care
Inspired by his physician father, Francisco always knew he wanted a career that prioritized helping others. But becoming a first responder wasn’t even on his radar until he joined his university’s resident firefighter program on a whim during his undergraduate studies at University of California, Davis. After graduation, he attended paramedic school and began work in the Woodside Fire Protection District in 2010.
Being a paramedic fulfilled Francisco’s inclination to provide hands-on medical care while working as a firefighter allowed him to work with “ropes and knots, hoses and pumps and machines — things that I had been exposed to as a kid through Boy Scouts,” he explained. “So, [my job] really blended a lot of these different pieces of me really well.”
But, after more than a decade as a firefighter, Francisco knew his learning journey wasn’t over. When he reached the 10-year mark in his career, he found himself asking what more he could do.
“It was hard, because I have a full-time career, and I enjoy what I do,” Francisco reflected. “I fundamentally enjoy emergency services … so then it becomes this question of, how does someone like me, who’s looking for more, but has a career [and] a young family, how do you fill that in?”
Returning to School
Francisco chose to pursue USC Bovard College’s Master of Science in Emergency Management online program, allowing him to keep his day job while taking courses ranging from disaster planning to critical infrastructure.
Due to the nature of his work, Francisco found that many of his homework assignments could be applied directly to his day job. In fact, his coursework inspired him to create an emergency operations plan for his department that was implemented before his graduation.
“My fire chief loved it and signed off on it,” Francisco said. “Not only getting to learn about it at school, but concurrently through my work being able to apply it directly … I was really fortunate for that.”
However, there were still times when work and school responsibilities clashed.
“There was a period while I was taking classes that I actually was on a wildland fire in Northern California for two weeks, and I was trying to make lectures from the hotel room on our days off and write paper assignments,” Francisco recalled.
Luckily, professors understood the nature of his work and the need for flexibility. And, as Francisco notes, he was not the only first responder in the program.
But by far the biggest support throughout the degree was Francisco’s wife, Abbey. “I have a six-year-old and a three-year-old,” he said. “There were days that I had to go write a paper or read some articles. …And having the support network of my wife was really helpful.”
Emergency Management in Action
Almost immediately after Francisco finished his emergency management studies in December 2024, California faced a historical disaster affecting thousands of lives — the January 2025 Southern California wildfires. As a member of the Urban Search and Rescue Team, California Task Force 3, he was deployed to the Palisades Fire on a search and rescue mission.
Over the next 10 days, his team searched for human remains in the rubble, while local agencies checked cell phone records and missing person reports. Francisco explained that, in a fire, families are often left wondering what happened to their loved ones.
“Because, you know, some of these people lost their cell phones. They might not have had any way of notifying their family if they made it out or not,” Francisco said.
Although his tasks were sobering, his job was essential in providing closure to families.
“It was a difficult assignment in the sense that our primary mission set is search and rescue, but recovery is also one of the things we do,” Francisco said.
Francisco also saw several of his former USC Bovard College professors, who are emergency management professionals, at the heart of the action — including on the news.
“To me, as a student having just finished in December … to just a couple weeks later see my professors actually in action was pretty inspiring,” Francisco said.
A Distinguished Award
When Francisco learned he was nominated for the Order of Arête, he was both surprised and pleased to discover that it wasn’t just for his deployment to the wildfires, which he said “was part of my job” — rather, it was for a range of traits, from his ability to drive nuanced discussions in class to his support of his crew’s wellbeing.
“I’m very grateful to be recognized,” Francisco said. “And I’m humbled because I know there are a lot of really outstanding people in this space who aren’t asking for recognition.”
Francisco’s professor Meghan McPherson, who recommended him for the award, said his leadership qualities especially stood out to her during his time in her class.
“[Jonathan’s] ability to synthesize complex concepts with real-world emergency response strategies will set him apart in this field in the future,” McPherson said. “His dedication to ensuring public safety and furthering his education in emergency management is a testament to his selflessness, resilience and profound sense of duty to his community.”
Francisco credits his emergency management degree with equipping him with strategies he can immediately implement in his work.
“I hope that for me, it opens doors [and] keeps more doors open within the fire service because I’m fairly young and still have a lot of time and energy to give back to this space,” Francisco said. “I think having this degree will definitely not only prepare me for more but also give me the tool sets to succeed.”
Learn more about the MS in Emergency Management online program today.
This article originally appeared on USC Online.