Richard E. Besser, M.D. serves as director of CDC’s Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response (COTPER), and is responsible for the center’s public health emergency preparedness and emergency response activities. COTPER is the primary CDC/ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) organization tasked with oversight of terrorism preparedness, response and protection for the nation from biological, chemical, radiological, and naturally occurring emergencies. Dr. Besser began his career at CDC in the Epidemic Intelligence Service working on the epidemiology of food-borne diseases. He has served as the epidemiology section chief in the Respiratory Diseases Branch, acting chief of the Meningitis and Special Pathogens Branch in the National Center for Infectious Disease, and as the medical director of Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work, CDC's national campaign to promote appropriate antibiotic use in the community. Dr. Besser received his B.A. degree (economics) from Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, and his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed a residency and chief residency in pediatrics at the John Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.