She then earned a Bachelor of Science in technology education from Colorado State University, a Master of Public Administration from the University of Colorado Denver, and a Master of Arts in homeland security from the Naval Postgraduate School.

[5][6][7] Criswell served as a member of the Colorado Air National Guard with the 140th Wing and was deployed to Kuwait directly after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

[8] Her nomination to be the next FEMA administrator was submitted to the United States Senate on February 22, 2021.

[9][2] In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, Criswell has been accused of abusing her power to deliberately deny relief to disaster victims who were political supporters of President-elect Donald Trump.

[10] The attorney general of Florida is suing Criswell and other FEMA employees, some of whom have claimed this discrimination is widespread in the agency.