**November 7-10, 2005 FEMA Emergency Management Higher Education Project
Weekly Activity Report**

**"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."**

\(1\) ANNA MARIA COLLEGE, PAXTON MA \-- HURRICANE KATRINA LESSONS
LEARNED CONFERENCE, DECEMBER 3, 2005:

November 8, 2005 \-- Received following announcement from Dr. Sue Swedis
at Anna Maria College:

Saturday, December 3, 2005 \-- LIFELINES \-- Protecting the Most
Vulnerable - the Response to Hurricane Katrina \-- An Interdisciplinary
Conference from the Graduate Program in Emergency Management and the
Molly Bish Center for the Protection of Children and the Elderly, Anna
Maria College, Paxton, Massachusetts, and the Central Regional Council,
National Association of Social Workers.

The conference will focus on developing practical means to improve
emergency protection for the most vulnerable sectors of our
populations - such as children, the elderly, the poor, and minority
communities. The goal is to develop a joint agenda and launch follow-up
projects that will use the lessons from the Katrina response in
research, analysis, education, exercises, advocacy, and
collaboration-building.

Sessions include:

\* commemoration of the victims of the 2005 hurricane season

\* keynote address

\* the impending storm - a meteorologist\'s view

\* the experience at ground level

\* preparation and response to Katrina - standards and beyond

\* working groups by interest area

\* creating a joint agenda for research and action

For more information please visit our website at
[[http://www.annamaria.edu]{.underline}](http://www.annamaria.edu/); or
e-mail <bwarren@annamaria.edu>

\(2\) CANADIAN PRESENTATION ON FEMA EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT HIGHER
EDUCATION

PROJECT:

November 9, 2005 \-- Pulled together a 25-slide presentation on the EM
HiEd Project from the slide presentation on the Project website, with a
few modifications and additions. The presentation is to be delivered on
November 16th in Toronto at an \"Emergency Management Education
Workshop,\"

sponsored by Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada. Forwarded
copy of presentation to my Canadian point of contact for this event,
Lianne Bellisario, Science Advisor, Science and Technology Policy,
Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada. For additional
information Ms.

Bellisario can be reached at: lianne.bellisario@psepc-sppcc.gc.ca

Will also attend the following \"2nd Annual Canadian Risk and Hazard
Network Conference,\" also in Toronto, from November 17-19. Additional
information concerning this conference can be found at:
[[http://www.crhnet2005.yorku.ca]{.underline}](http://www.crhnet2005.yorku.ca/)

\(3\) COASTAL HAZARDS MANAGEMENT \-- GRADUATE-LEVEL COURSE REVIEW:

November 8, 2005 \-- Started receiving review comments on this graduate
level college course which has been developed by a team led by Professor
David Brower, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The review
comments period ends on December 2.

\(4\) CUMBERLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE, VINELAND NJ \-- HOLDING HOMELAND
SECURITY SEMINAR, FEBRUARY 22, 2006:

November 7, 2005 \-- Received tri-fold on this upcoming event \-- at the
Wyndham Mount Laurel, Mt. Laurel NJ, from 8:00am to 3:30pm. For
information call 856-304-3519.

\(5\) DISASTER RESPONSE OPERATIONS AND MANAGEMENT \-- UPPER DIVISION
COLLEGE COURSE REVIEW:

November 7, 2005 \-- Received set of review comments on this course and
forwarded to the course developer, Dr. David McEntire, University of
North Texas. The review comments period ends on November 18.

\(6\) DISASTERS AS A GROWTH BUSINESS ARTICLES:

Bernstein, Sharon. \"Eleven Years After Northridge, Resolve Fades Over
Quake Safety.\" Los Angeles Times, November 5, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-seismic5nov05,0,3974720.story?coll=l]{.underline}a-home-local

Kim, Susan. \"Study Shows Response Failures - Disaster Response
Worldwide is Stunted By Something Surprisingly Simple: Failed
Relationships.\" Disaster News Network, November 9, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.disasternews.net/news/news.php?articleid=2948#more]{.underline}](http://www.disasternews.net/news/news.php?articleid=2948#more)

Lee, Anita. \"Miss. Coastal Areas Resisting New Advisory Elevations for
Rebuilding.\" Knight Ridder, November 5, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/nation/13084938.htm]{.underline}](http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/nation/13084938.htm)

Musgrave, Jane. \"Better Storm Defenses Eyed.\" Palm Beach Post (FL),
November 6, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.palmbeachpost.com/search/content/local_news/epaper/2005/11/06/s1c]{.underline}\_mitigate_1106.html

Stewart, David. \"Repeated Flood Damage Should Be Driving Home Some
Important Lessons To Us.\" Citizen-Times (Asheville, NC), November 8,
2005.

Accessed at:

[http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051108/OPINION03/5]{.underline}1107020/1058

\(7\) EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT & HOMELAND SECURITY/DEFENSE HIGHER EDUCATION
CONFERENCE, JUNE 5-8, 2006:

November 8, 2005 \-- Discussed with staff at the National Emergency
Management Association their involvement in the next EH HiEd Conference
\-- on the theme \"Preparing for Catastrophe.\" Specifically requested
their assistance in organizing the topic area of State Office of
Emergency Management Perspectives on Preparing for Catastrophe.

November 9, 2005 \-- Forwarded to the EMI Webmaster for upload to the
Project website \-- HiEd Conferences section \-- a HiEd Conference Theme
and Topics Document \-- to replace the completely overtaken draft posted
shortly following the last conference \-- should be accessible shortly.

November 10, 2005 \-- Communicated with Dr. Stan Supinski with Battelle,
who is working with NORTHCOM and its Homeland Security/Defense Education
Consortium, concerning agenda topics for the next conference.

\(8\) FEMA FRAUD:

Dixon, Jennifer, Shawn Windsor, and Victoria Turk. \"Detroiters Soak
FEMA, Then Get Away Clean.\" Detroit Free Press, November 7, 2005.
Accessed at:

[[http://www.freep.com/news/locway/fema7e_20051107.htm]{.underline}](http://www.freep.com/news/locway/fema7e_20051107.htm)

\(9\) FEMA MITIGATION AND INSURANCE UPDATE:

November 7, 2005 \-- Received request from FEMA Mitigation Division to
run following item in the Activity Report:

\"Mitigation & Insurance Update\" is now available at
[[www.fema.gov/fima/update/]{.underline}](../www.fema.gov/fima/update/).
It provides the latest information about Mitigation and Insurance topics
related to both ongoing recovery operations in the Gulf Region and long
term mitigation activities. The Update will be made available on a
regular basis to those who are working together to recover from the
current disasters and to build better and safer in the future. We
encourage you to review the information and pass the URL along to others
within your organization who would find it useful. This website is part
of an initiative to enhance communication with stakeholders and
organizations. Your feedback is important to us as we continue to
develop systems for stakeholder communications over the course of the
next year. If you have any questions, suggestions, or new ideas, please
email FEMA-Mitigation-Update@dhs.gov. If your organization has a
website, please consider providing a link to the FEMA Mitigation Update
site.

\(10\) GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY:

November 9, 2005 \-- Communicated with Dr. Robin L. Dillon-Merrill,
McDonough School of Business at Georgetown concerning an investigation,
by a group of Georgetown faculty in the business school, law center, and
school of foreign service, of the development of a series of workshops
\"to engage academics and policy makers on \'Hurricane Preparedness and
Response Policy: Lessons Learned from Past Events\" \-- the goal of
which is to spark innovative research and policy initiatives \-- through
three workshops in 2006. For more information, Dr. Dillon-Merrill can be
reached at: rld9@georgetown.edu

\(11\) HOMELAND SECURITY, TERRORISM AND RELATED ARTICLES:

Chertoff, Michael. \"Remarks by Secretary Michael Chertoff, U.S.
Department of Homeland Security at the International Association of Fire
Chiefs Leadership Summit.\" Washington, DC, November 4, 2005. Accessed
at:

[[http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interapp/speech/speech_0262.xml]{.underline}](http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interapp/speech/speech_0262.xml)

Clayton, Mark. \"High-Tech Sniffers To Stop \'Dirty\' Bombs.\" Christian
Science Monitor, November 9, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1109/p01s03-ussc.html]{.underline}](http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1109/p01s03-ussc.html)

Kertscher, Tom, and Reid J. Epstein. \"Anti-Terror Funds Spread Widely -
State Spends Big Homeland Security Money in Small Places, Perhaps Not in
Proportion to Threat.\" Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, November 6, 2005.

Accessed at:

[http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interapp/speech/speech_0262.xmlhttp://www.jsonl]{.underline}ine.com/news/state/nov05/368458.asp

Lose, Stephen. \"Medical Chief Needs Clear Authority, Experts Testify.\"

Federal Times, November 9, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.federaltimes.com/index2.php?S=1223264]{.underline}](http://www.federaltimes.com/index2.php?S=1223264)

Wald, Matthew L. \"Agency Seeks Broad Standard for \'Dirty Bomb\'
Exposure.\"

New York Times, November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/08/politics/08nuke.html]{.underline}](http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/08/politics/08nuke.html)

\(12\) IVY TECH STATE COLLEGE, INDIANAPOLIS\--APPROVAL RECEIVED TO
DEVELOP HOMELAND SECURITY & EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AD:

November 9, 2005 \-- Talked with Tim Faulk, Fire Science Program at Ivy
Tech State College, who called to note that the Indiana Sate Higher
Education Commission has just recently approved the school\'s proposal
to develop a Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness Associate
Degree. Two courses are being developed for the upcoming January 2006
Winter/Spring Semester \--

\(1\) Introduction to Homeland Security, and (2) Risk Management. The
Project Assistant will now work with Mr. Faulk to draft a description of
this program for upload to The College List on the Project homepage.

\(13\) KATRINA/RITA/WILMA-RELATED ARTICLES AND REPORTS:

Anderson, Ed. \"New Building Code Could Up Construction Costs 5%.\" The
Times Picayune (New Orleans), November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

<http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/capital/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1131432301215490.xml>

Anderson, Ed. \"Debate on Statewide Building Code Revs Up.\" The
Times-Picayune, Nov. 9, 2005. Accessed at:

<http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/capital/index.ssf?/base/news-3/113152164142700.xml>

Associated Press. \"Lawmakers Discuss Military\'s Disaster Role.\"
November 9, 2005. Accessed at:

<http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/11/09/ap/national/printableD8DP5R403.shtml>

Ballard, Mark. \"Building Code Changes Advancing.\" Advocate (Baton
Rouge, LA), Nov. 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.2theadvocate.com/cgi-bin/printme.pl]{.underline}](http://www.2theadvocate.com/cgi-bin/printme.pl)

Connolly, Ceci. \"Thousands of Katrina 911 calls Went Astray.\"
Washington Post, Nov. 8, 2005. Accessed at:

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/07/AR2005110701334_pf.html>

\[Excerpt: \"The disintegration of New Orleans\'s 911 system carries
national implications for future disasters, said public safety experts.
While some communities boast sophisticated, high-tech centers with
elaborate contingency plans, most cities have older systems lacking
adequate backup measures for massive disasters.\"\]

Farrington, Brendon. \"State CFO \[FL\]: New Building Code, Catastrophe
Funds Needed.\" Orlando Sentinel, November 7, 2005. Accessed at:

<http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-bk-gallagher110705,0,2497236.story?coll=orl-home-headlines>

Flemming, Paul. \"Officials Urge Storm Preparations.\" News-Press (Ft.

Myers, FL), Nov. 10, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051110/WEATHER01/5111]{.underline}00398/1002/NEWS01

Government Accountability Office. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita:
Preliminary Observations on Contracting for Response and Recovery
Efforts - Statement of David E. Cooper, Director, Acquisition and
Sourcing Management, Testimony Before the Senate Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship (GAO-66-246T). Washington DC: GAO,
November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d06246t.pdf]{.underline}](http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d06246t.pdf)

Gyan, Joe, Jr. \"I Told You So, Port Chief Says.\" The Advocate (Baton
Rouge), November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/110805/new_levee001.shtml]{.underline}](http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/110805/new_levee001.shtml)

Harper, Jeremy. \"Pros, Cons of Adopting Building Code Pondered.\"
American Press (Lake Charles, LA), November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.americanpress.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=807&I]{.underline}temid=53

Hollis, Mark. \"\"Emergency Chief Says Floridians Have Slacked Off On
Hurricane Preparedness.\" South Florida Sun-Sentinel, November 10, 2005.

Accessed at:

[http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/legislature/sfl-fstorm10nov10,0,6772368.sto]{.underline}ry

Scutari, Chip. \"Western Leaders Talk Ed, Disaster.\" Arizona Republic,
November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1108gov-conference08]{.underline}.html#

Wallman, Brittany. \"Homeowners Say Costly Retrofitting to Protect
Against Hurricanes Is Worth It.\" Sun-Sentinel (FL), November 7, 2005.
Accessed at:

[[http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-retro07nov07,0,1252563,pr]{.underline}](http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-retro07nov07,0,1252563,pr)int.story?coll=sfla-news-broward

Walsh, Bill. \"Lawmakers Agree on Enhanced Levees.\" The Times Picayune
(New Orleans), November 8, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/washington/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1131433050215]{.underline}490.xml

\(14\) MIDDLESEX COMMUNITY COLLEGE, LOWELL MA \-- AVIAN INFLUENZA
PANDEMIC CONFERENCE, DECEMBER 6, 2005:

November 10, 2005 \-- Received following announcement from Terrance
Downes, Executive Director of the Program on Homeland Security at
Middlesex Community

College:

\"The Program on Homeland Security at Middlesex Community College in
Lowell will present its AVIAN INFLUENZA PANDEMIC CONFERENCE on Tuesday,
December 6, 2005, in Lowell. Attached please find a flyer which provides
all the essential conference information. As you\'ll see, a number of
noted medical experts will make presentations. The conference is aimed
at MD\'s, RN\'s, public health and allied health professionals,
government operations and emergency management planners, education
administrators (including from the higher education community), and the
media.

Presentations will include (among others):

\"The Deadliest Disease: An Overview of Past Influenza Pandemics\"

Presenter: DAVID G. SIDEBOTTOM, M.D.

Infectious Diseases Consultant, Lowell General Hospital, and Saints
Memorial Medical Center, Lowell, MA;

\"An Analysis of the Present Pandemic Danger, and the Need for Close
Cooperation to Prepare and Respond\";

Presenter: HOWARD KOH, M.D., M.P.H.

Associate Dean for Public Health Practice, Harvard School of Public
Health;

\"Specific Issues Related to the H5N1 Virus\"

Presenter: PASCAL M. WORTLEY, M.D., M.P.H.

National Immunization Program, Centers For Disease Control (CDC),
Atlanta

\"The Massachusetts Situation\"

Presenter: ALFRED DeMARIA, M.D.

Chief Medical Officer, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, and
Director, Massachusetts Bureau of Communicable Disease Control.

Interest in this subject is keen, and conference space is limited. The
cost of the full day program is \$85.00, which includes a continental
breakfast, lunch, and midmorning and midafternoon refreshments. Those
interested in attending are encouraged to call the Middlesex Community
College toll-free Registration Line: 800-818-3434.

As indicated on the flyer, overnight accommodations are available at a
special MCC conference rate (\$79.00 plus tax per night) at the Lowell
Doubletree Hotel, immediately adjacent to the college campus, for those
who call the hotel directly (978-452-1200) not later than November 22.\"

For additional information Director Downes can be reached at:

downest@middlesex.mass.edu

\(15\) MILITARY ROLE IN DISASTERS ARTICLE:

Associated Press. \"Governors Balk at Bigger Role for Military.\"
November 6, 2005. Accessed at:

[http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/06/national/nationalspecial/06govs.html?pagew]{.underline}anted=print

\(16\) MOUNT SAINT MARY\'S COLLEGE, EMMITSBURG, MD:

November 4, 2005 - The Project Assistant spoke to Dr. Timothy Wolfe,
Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Sociology about the Hi Ed
Project. Dr. Wolfe is currently developing a Sociology of Disaster
course to begin in the spring 06 semester. Gave him the website address
and pointed out the HI Ed presentation, syllabi compilation and college
list. Also send AD, BA and HS CDs and one Conference 04 DVD set.
Encouraged Dr. Wolfe to sign up for weekly activity reports.

\(17\) NEW YORK UNIVERSITY \-- INTERCEP SEARCHING FOR RESEARCH DIRECTOR:

November 10, 2005 \-- Received from Bill Raisch, Director of the
International Center for Enterprise Preparedness, the following

announcement:

\"The International Center for Enterprise Preparedness (InterCEP) is an
academic center at New York University dedicated to private sector
emergency preparedness both nationally and internationally
([[www.nyu.edu/intercep]{.underline}](../www.nyu.edu/intercep)).

Our activities span research, education, training and special projects.
Our Center is funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and a
number of foundations and corporations. We take a university-wide
approach to our efforts and integrate our activity across the university
and its various schools and centers. Similarly, we seek out cooperative
opportunities with other academic institutions, professional bodies,
industry associations and government agencies. The Center has recently
created a new position of

Research Director. This individual will be responsible for coordinating
and communicating the Center\'s research in private sector emergency
preparedness. He or she will also be directly involved in actively
advancing initiatives with stakeholders in this arena. In particular,
this individual will be responsible for coordinating all research
activity related to a new initiative in Wide Impact Business Incentives
for Preparedness, recently funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

([[http://www.nyu.edu/intercep/events/20051108-167.html]{.underline}](http://www.nyu.edu/intercep/events/20051108-167.html))
Position is also posted online at the following link:

[https://sjobs.brassring.com/1033/ASP/TG/cim_jobdetail.asp?jobId=362096&type=]{.underline}search&JobReqLang=1&recordstart=1&JobSiteId=27&JobSiteInfo=362096_27

We looking for an insightful, motivated, results-oriented individual to
play a lead role on our team at InterCEP and hopefully to cooperatively
do some real good in this important area.\"

For additional information Director Raisch can be reached at:

william.raisch@nyu.edu

\(18\) ST. JOHN\'S UNIVERSITY, MANHATTAN \-- INVESTIGATING DEVELOPMENT
OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM:

November 10, 2005 \-- Talked with Gerard (Gerry) A. McEnerney, Executive
Director of Emergency Management at St. John\'s University in Manhattan,
NY, concerning the initiation of an investigation into some sort of
emergency management program there. Compared schedules and agreed to set
up a conference call with several St. John\'s Deans the last week of the
month \-- for me basically to make the case for the development of a
program there \-- so stay tuned. In the meantime, for more information,
Gerry McEnerney can be reached at: mcenerng@stjohns.edu.

\(19\) WAYNE COMMUNITY COLLEGE, GOLDSBORO NC:

November 9, 2005 \-- Received from Barb Russo at Wayne Community College
a copy of her syllabus on \"Critical Incident Management for Public
Safety\" being taught this semester \-- for posting to the Syllabi
Compilation on the Project website. Forwarded to the EMI Webmaster for
posting, where it should be accessible shortly.

\(20\) WITT ON FEMA, DISASTER PREPAREDNESS:

Dethman, Leigh. \"Ex-Chief Blames Bush for FEMA Woes.\" Deseret Morning
News (UT), November 9, 2005. Accessed at:

[[http://deseretnews.com/dn/print/1,1442,635159811,00.html]{.underline}](http://deseretnews.com/dn/print/1,1442,635159811,00.html)

Scutari, Chip. \"Governors Told To Press Congress On Disaster Plan -
Ex-FEMA Official Notes Communications Needs.\" Arizona Republic,
November 10, 2005.

Accessed at:

[[http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1110gov-wga10.html#]{.underline}](http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1110gov-wga10.html)

B.Wayne Blanchard, Ph.D., CEM

Higher Education Project Manager

Emergency Management Institute

National Emergency Training Center

Federal Emergency Management Agency

Department of Homeland Security

16825 S. Seton, N-430

Emmitsburg, MD 21727

\(301\) 447-1262, voice

\(301\) 447-1598, fax

wayne.blanchard@dhs.gov

[[http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu]{.underline}](http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu)