Amalio Jusino

Amalio Jusino '24 is no stranger to hard work.

Born in North Adams and raised in New Ashford, Amalio's journey began early on his family's small farm. As a child, he took on various odd jobs, from working at Ron's Getty to Howard Johnson's. At just 17, Amalio joined the New Ashford Volunteer Fire Department, sparking a lifelong passion for emergency management. By 19, he was working part-time at the Williamstown Police Department before moving south to Virginia and eventually Savannah.

However, the Northeast's familiar charm called him back, and he returned home, first settling in Pownal, Vermont, where he worked for the fire department. It was in Pownal that Amalio opened his first business, Southwestern Vermont Fire Prevention Education, before making his way back to the Berkshires.

"I didn't immediately have a job here, but I started working for BankBoston at the in-store branch at Stop and Shop in North Adams," Amalio recalls. "I quickly rose through the ranks, from a teller to a sales associate to commercial lending — it was a whirlwind."

During this time, Amalio met Candace Kelley, a colleague in the commercial lending department at the bank. "She became a great mentor of mine. She knew I didn't have a degree, but I had a strong work ethic and tenacity," Amalio says. Encouraged by Candace, he enrolled in economics and accounting classes at Berkshire Community College in 1994. However, with his career taking off, his education took a back seat.

Amalio continued to thrive in banking, experiencing significant change. "There were a lot of transitions during that time. I ended up working for Citizens Bank and Greylock Federal Credit Union, but I wasn't continuing my schooling," he reflects. The good salary was a compelling reason to stay. As the son of a hard-working family, he was earning enough to purchase his first vehicle with cash and pay his way through experiences he valued, all while continuing to volunteer with the fire department and emergency services.

Eventually, Amalio transitioned from banking to become a campus police officer at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) and later advanced his career in EMS, eventually becoming the Deputy Chief of North Adams Ambulance. Becoming a paramedic and with his law enforcement experience, he completed the Counter Narcotics and Terrorism Operational Medical Support (CONTOMS) course. "After that, working as a paramedic became my passion. I also began leading the Regional Emergency Planning Committee for Northern Berkshire, which spans eight communities," Amalio says. "I started channeling all of my experience into emergency management."

In 2005, Amalio founded Emergency Response Consulting (ERC), a business he still owns today. His reputation as an emergency management expert grew, yet his college education remained on the back burner. "I was very focused on writing grants for my business and developing training for emergency responders," he says.

Fast forward to 2020, when Amalio's emergency management skills were truly put to the test as COVID-19 hit the United States. North Adams Ambulance Chief John Meaney, recognizing Amalio's deep experience in emergency management, alongside retired North Adams Fire Chief Steve Meranti and members of the REPC, set up the COVID emergency management operations center at the airport. "They literally moved my entire office to that location. We ran that operation for over two years," he recalls. "It was a profound experience — that was my purpose, my value for two years."

As the pandemic waned, Williams College approached Amalio with an offer. "They had a new director of their campus safety department, Eric Sullivan, who came from St. Louis. He told me, ‘Everywhere I go, when I talk about emergency management, your name comes up.' He hired me."

Determined to finish his degree and benefiting from Williams College's tuition reimbursement and educational support, Amalio committed to never missing a semester of classes until he achieved his degree.

I made a life choice: as long as I work for Williams and am surrounded by people so focused on education, I'm going to take at least one class every semester. So I reached out to BCC, and suddenly I had a whole community of people supporting my education. The unique thing is that they are all successful, focused women with a tenacity to make our community better. Christina Wynn, Christine Hoyt, Reena Bucknell and others — they were relentless in helping me succeed. BCC fueled my motivation to finish my degree. I felt like everyone was sitting at the table with me. Failure was not an option!

With more than 25 years of professional experience, Amalio earned life experience credits. While his initial college focus was on business, he decided to pursue a degree in criminal justice. This push to earn a degree wasn't just professional — it was deeply personal. His mother, who passed away in 2013, had always urged him to complete his education. "She was a tough woman. Her last words to me were, ‘Get your degree.' I did. And I'm not done," says Amalio, who graduated in May 2024 with an associate degree. His mother, a graduate of BCC's nursing program, had been just a few credits away from earning her master's degree before succumbing to cancer. Amalio truly feels she placed the women mentioned above on his side, as they all share some of his mother's professional traits.

In a poignant twist, the speaker at Amalio's commencement ceremony was Charles Redd, a graduate of the BCC nursing program and now the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer for Berkshire Health Systems. "He took the same classes at BCC as my mom. It was like she put him on that stage to talk to me," Amalio reflects. "His speech was powerful. It was an emotional connection."

As Amalio completes numerous federal-level courses in emergency management, he is considering his next steps to finish his bachelor's degree. "I'm thinking about getting my fire science degree from BCC or complementing my emergency management work and business ownership with a degree in public administration. My ultimate goal is to leave a legacy in emergency management and make planning and mitigation a priority so that response isn't such a monumental task," he says. "I'm all about regionalization. We need to adopt a no-borders approach to emergency management, breaking down silos, egos and attitudes. Building relationships leads to great plans and a collaborative response."

Regardless of where life leads him, Amalio is committed to leading with empathy, a value instilled in him by his mother. "I want to follow my heart's desire, and that's emergency management — keeping my community safe."