Toni Schwartz is the Public Information Officer (PIO) for the Hawaii State Department of Public Safety, consisting of the Corrections Division (jails and prisons), Law Enforcement Division (Sheriffs and Narcotics Enforcement). Toni is responsible for the external and internal communications of the department including news media coverage and special events with the Public Safety Director, state lawmakers, and public/private organizations. Toni is FEMA certified for Incident Command and Disaster Communications and has been called to assist on several incidents with the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA) Joint Information Center (JIC). She recently deployed for 26 days to the Big Island of Hawaii to help the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency and HI-EMA with their media communications and public messaging during the on-going Kilauea Volcano Eruption Event. She previously served for three years, as the Hawaii State Department of Human Services PIO, overseeing communications for several programmatic functions to include Medicaid, Child Protective Services, Welfare and Food Stamps programs. Before being wooed into state government service, Toni was a television news producer for several years and worked at network affiliates in Hawaii, Texas, South Carolina and Illinois. Toni grew up in the south suburbs of Chicago and has a B.A. in Speech Communication with an emphasis in radio, TV and film from Eastern Illinois University.