**February 8, 2008 FEMA EM Hi-Ed Program Activity Report**

**(1) Arkansas Tech University (ATU) Emergency Management Students
Assist in Tornado Relief**

Received today from Kay Goss, adjunct faculty at ATU a February 7, 2008
clipping from *The Courier* which begins:

> "All the lessons they have learned in the classroom became very real
> for students Wednesday in Arkansas Tech University's Emergency
> Administration and Management (EAM) program when they participated in
> tornado damage relief efforts in Atkins. Approximately 30 Tech EAM
> students reported to the Wilson J. Matthews Civic Center in Atkins at
> 6 a.m. Wednesday to help local authorities conduct preliminary damage
> assessments following a tornado that affected more than 40 homes and
> took the lives of at least three residents in the Pope County
> community Tuesday night.
>
> "This was a real eye-opener," said Zach Harris, a senior Tech EAM
> student...I didn't realize how extensive the damage was until I got to
> Atkins. If any good at all came from this situation, it was that
> Tech's EAM students received real-world experience in the field of
> disaster management. Nothing in the classroom can prepared someone for
> what we saw and experienced today."
>
> "The students were functioning as part of the Pope County Community
> Emergency Response Team (CERT). Students in the field were under the
> direction of Tech EAM faculty member Beth Wilson Gray, who said
> several phases of the CERT members' training were utilized Wednesday.
> 'In our EAM courses, we cover many of the social issues involved with
> handling disasters, which include coping skills for emergency managers
> as well as those they serve,' Gray said. 'In our CERT training, we
> specifically cover the emotions associated with disaster response and
> recovery efforts for not only the victims and their families, but also
> the responders and volunteers'."

This is what we are talking about -- education, training and experience
coming together \-- building professionalism today and tomorrow.

**(2) DHS FY 2000 Budget in Brief:**

Department of Homeland Security. *Homeland Security: Budget-in-Brief
Fiscal Year 2009*. DHS, 4 Feb 2008, 149 pages. At:
<http://online.fema.net/pdf/homepage/budget_bib_fy2009.pdf>

\[FEMA information is at pages 67-75 (75-83 on computer). Interesting
start of the FEMA description since the traditional "four phases of
emergency management" \[mitigation, preparedness, response and
recovery\] have undergone a variety of transformations in recent years:

> "The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) leads the Federal
> Government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects
> of, responding to, and recovering from domestic disasters and
> emergencies, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror."

The distribution email noted there was a mistake in the FEMA section,
listing FTE (Full-Time Equivalents) as 2464, when it should be 2854.

**(3) Framework for Voluntary Preparedness Report -- Implementing 9/11
Commission Act Recommendations:**

ASIS, Int., DRII, NFPA, RIMS. *Framework for Voluntary
Preparedness. *18Jan2008, 24 pp. At:
<http://www.asisonline.org/guidelines/Framework_For_Voluntary_Preparedness_FINAL_REPORT.pdf>

The subtitle of this report is "Briefing Regarding Private Sector
Approaches to Title IX of H.R. 1 and Public Law 110-53, 'Implementing
Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007'." \-- Report
Prepared for Paula J. Olsiewski, Ph.D., Program Director, Alfred P.
Sloan Foundation.

From Continuity Central website description of the "Framework for
Voluntary Prep." Report:

> "A new federal law calling for the creation of a voluntary private
> sector preparedness standards program has resulted in the
> collaboration between ASIS International, the Disaster Recovery
> Institute International, the National Fire Protection Association, and
> the Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc., to prepare a report in
> response to the homeland security legislation. An interdisciplinary
> team from the four organizations combined their expertise and
> perspectives to develop a mechanism to address verifiable private
> sector preparedness called for in the new homeland security law
> 'Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007.' The
> interdisciplinary team\'s conclusions and recommendation have been
> released in a report titled 'Framework for Voluntary Preparedness.'
>
> "The interdisciplinary team brought together professional associations
> that view preparedness from security management, business continuity
> management, emergency management and enterprise risk management
> perspectives. The Framework for Voluntary Preparedness highlights the
> commonality of the different perspectives and approaches. \"In the
> report, the interdisciplinary team recommended that in order for the
> private sector to adequately and voluntarily establish preparedness
> programs, it should be given the flexibility to choose from various
> standards, guidelines and best practices that best meet their needs
> for preparedness....The report identifies core common elements of a
> preparedness program and provides a crosswalk of existing standards,
> guidelines and best practices. Preparedness and resilience, while
> important to businesses and organizations, must be done in a
> cost-effective manner that is in sync with the organization\'s culture
> and business model..."

**(4) State of Georgia and Homeland Security Grants -- DHS OIG Review:**

Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General.  *The
State of Georgia\'s Management of State Homeland Security Grants Awarded
During Fiscal Years 2002 through 2004*.  Washington, DC: DHS OIG,
January 2008, 45 pages. Accessed directly at:
<http://www.dhs.gov/xoig/assets/mgmtrpts/OIG_08-22_Jan08.pdf> or
indirectly at: <http://www.dhs.gov/xoig/rpts/>

**(5) Terrorism:**

 

*USA Today*.  \"Official: Al-Qaeda\'s Tactics May Be Backfiring.\"
February 7, 2008 accessed at:
<http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2008-02-07-terror-threat_N.htm>

 

\[Excerpt:  \"Al-Qaeda\'s embrace of violence may be undermining the
terrorist group\'s support in the Muslim world, the nation\'s top
intelligence official said Thursday.\" The question becomes, are we
reaching a tipping point to witness the decline of this radical
behavior?\" said Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell at a
House Intelligence Committee hearing. \"We don\'t know but we are
watching it very closely.\"  Most victims of al-Qaeda bombings and
attacks are Muslims, McConnell said. In Iraq, the violence perpetrated
against Iraqis by insurgents associated with al-Qaeda pushed local
tribes to turn against the group and has led to improved security, he
said, adding that the same pattern may take hold elsewhere.  \"In the
last year to 18 months, al-Qaeda has had difficulty in fundraising and
sustaining themselves,\" McConnell said.  CIA Director Gen. Michael
Hayden said there seems to be increasing willingness in the Islamic
world to question al-Qaeda\'s vision. As evidence, he pointed to the
fact that al-Qaeda\'s second-in-command, Ayman al Zawahiri, now has a
website to which readers can submit questions.\"

**(6) Website Materials:**

The EM HiEd Program Assistant sent to the EMI Webmaster modified/updated
replacements of the following documents this week:

Bibliography of Emergency Management and Related References On-Hand

Billion Dollar Disasters

Guide to Emergency Management and Related Terms and Definitions

These new materials should be up on the EM Hi-Ed Website shortly.

 

The End \-- hope all readers have a good weekend \-- or had one.

 

B. Wayne Blanchard, Ph.D., CEM\
Higher Education Program Manager\
Emergency Management Institute\
National Emergency Training Center\
Federal Emergency Management Agency\
Department of Homeland Security\
16825 S. Seton, K-011\
Emmitsburg, MD 21727\
<wayne.blanchard@dhs.gov>\
<http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu>

**"Please note: Some of the Web sites linked to in this document are not
federal government Web sites, and may not necessarily operate under the
same laws, regulations, and policies as federal Web sites."**

EMI, the nation's pre-eminent emergency management training
organization, offers training at no charge to emergency managers and
allied professions through its resident classes in Emmitsburg, MD, its
online courses <http://training.fema.gov/IS/> and through development of
hands-off training courses.  To access upcoming resident courses with
vacancies <http://training.fema.gov/EMICCourses/>. 

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