Round Table Discussion Invitation | Tuesday 9/20/22 3pm PT FMV (Female Genital Violence) and Trauma-Informed Care.

 

(Score\Grade=D). Dept of Education. Do our schools, colleges, and universities make the grade? September 2022

  REPRINT FROM BEMA INTERNATIONAL of webpage 'Page' September 2019

          (https://www.blackemergmanagersassociation.org/p/hbucs-future-in-homeland-security.html) 

Department of Education.  Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students, in partnership with our Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance Center, is pleased to announce the release of two new publications and three special topic courses added to the online course catalog. Thank you again for your interest, and best of luck with your continued work. REMS TA Center Team (866) 540-7367 http://rems.ed.gov  NEW! The REMS TA Center is pleased to announce the release of two new publications in our Success Stories series "Promoting Emergency Preparedness Among Non-English Speaking Students" describes how Miami Dade College (MDC) developed multilingual informative videos for communicating important information on emergency operations and preparedness to its ethnically and linguistically diverse students and staff. "Code Blue: Seton Hall University Website for Emergency Preparedness and Response" details how Seton Hall University (NJ) developed a website to introduce students and faculty members to emergency management issues. The publication details the contents of the site, and what Seton Hall University did to develop, implement, and promote the site. Success Stories is a series prepared by the Office of Safe and Healthy Students and the REMS TA Center. Success Stories offer a brief profile of specific practices developed by school districts or universities that were created through leveraging resources, are proven successful, and are replicable by other sites. View all Success Stories   We are always eager to profile effective practices developed by school districts or universities. If you are interested in profiling your institution's achievements in one of these publications, please submit a short description of your "success story" and your complete contact information to the REMS TA Center via email at: tasupport@remstacenter.org so that we may consider your story for a future publication. NEW! Three Special Topics Courses Added to the Online Course Catalog The REMS TA Center is pleased to announce that three new courses have been added to the online School Emergency Management Course Series, a tool being offered to provide emergency management training for schools. Food Defense for Schools: Essential to a Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan Conducting a Safety Audit at Schools: Inspecting School Buildings, Grounds, and the Surrounding Community Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP) in School Emergency Management The U.S. Department of Education has developed a series of online courses on school emergency management. This training is available to all schools and to others interested in learning more about this important subject. All of the online courses provide guidelines, checklists, and specific action items for school officials to consider. The courses often include case study scenarios on emergency incidents at schools, giving learners an opportunity to practice their emergency management decision-making skills. The new courses are NOW AVAILABLE on the http://rems.ed.gov Web site here: http://rems.ed.gov/onlinecourses/. Host a No-Cost Training for Your School or District The REMS TA Center offers on-site trainings on a limited basis, via request, to school districts and institutions of higher education. Emergency Management-101 This four-hour overview of the four phases of emergency management-Prevention-Mitigation, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery-will provide school districts and emergency management teams with a basic understanding of the key components of an emergency management plan, and the elements central to school emergency preparedness through an all-hazards approach. The training's purpose is to expand and enhance emergency management planning efforts throughout your district and schools.  Are you interested in hosting this training?   NEW! Adult Sexual Misconduct: Prevention and Management As part of an all-hazards emergency management plan, school districts must prevent, prepare, respond to, and recover from critical incidents. This includes incidents of adult sexual misconduct. It is critical that all school personnel demonstrate appropriate behavior in order to prevent incidents or allegations of sexual misconduct. The school community needs to be prepared to recognize questionable behavior and respond appropriately if sexual misconduct is suspected. Finally, by working together, schools need to understand how to recover following an incident or allegation of sexual misconduct. Are you interested in hosting this training?  Safe School Initiative Threat Assessment Training This training session presents the findings from the U.S. Department of Education/U.S. Secret Service Safe School Initiative (SSI), a study that focused on the thinking, planning, and other behaviors engaged in by K-12 students who carried out attacks on schools. Are you interested in hosting this training?

Sept Preparedness Month. CERT Should Be Mandatory Starting at K12 Level and General Ed Requirements in Colleges and Universities

 REPRINT FROM BEMA INTERNATIONAL from October 

http://www.govtech.com/em/disaster/Fall-2017-EM-CERT-Should-Be-Mandatory.html

CERT Should Be Mandatory

All too often, businesses and organizations expect that first responders can get to them quickly in a major disaster.

by Larissa Paschyn / October 30, 2017

Too often, businesses and organizations rely on the hope that first responders will be able to reach them in time during a major disaster.  However, the bigger the disaster, the more strain on limited resources, and the less likely the government will be able to respond.  As a result, it is imperative that everyone in an organization can use their own resources and skills to take care of each other.

FEMA maintains the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program as an official emergency preparedness program. However, there is no obligation or requirement for schools and employers in high-hazard areas to implement or maintain such programs on site.

The CERT concept was originally developed following a series of earthquakes in the U.S. and Puerto Rico that left hundreds dead, injured and without emergency services. CERT volunteers are educated about disaster preparedness for the hazards that may impact their area, and CERT trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization and disaster medical operations. Local responders can rely on CERTs during disaster situations, which allows them to focus on more complex tasks.

Yet public education campaigns encouraging participation in CERTs have not been highly effective or visible.  For example, in California’s Bay Area, few residents are even aware that their neighborhoods offer CERT. Combine that with the fact that numerous IT companies in the Bay Area are basically small cities, and you are looking at a recipe for disaster.  With the limited man-power and resources local emergency response has, these IT villages are not likely to receive help for a long period of time. And let’s not forget the sheer density of downtown San Francisco and Oakland, where emergency response will also have a difficult time responding to all affected buildings.

Without holding schools and businesses accountable, there is a greater likelihood of loss of life when a catastrophic disaster occurs, such as tornado, flood or earthquake.  In a catastrophic disaster, first responders will not be able to assist for a prolonged period of time.  By requiring businesses of more than 150 persons and schools to have a work or campus-based (C-CERT) team in place, local public safety can focus on other areas [during an emergency situation]; allowing the affected school/company to be self-sufficient for a time.

In any disaster, you can find numerous accounts of neighbors and regular citizens assisting at the scene before response agencies could deploy.  After the Joplin, Mo., tornado in 2011, neighbors assisted in digging others out of the rubble.  During the 2016 Louisiana floods, instead of waiting for the government to come rescue them, the people of Louisiana used privately owned boats to save their neighbors. This “Cajun Navy” was responsible for saving the lives of thousands of Louisianans.

In South San Francisco, biotech companies have been ahead of the game for years, maintaining on-site search and rescue, medical, hazmat teams, and incident command teams. In the event of an earthquake, they will be able to rescue and treat their own staff before help arrives.

The fact is that our communities and our facilities are one of the most effective ways to ensure that we are prepared in the event of a future emergency response situation, and every business should be a part of that preparedness. Schools and companies need to be able to take care of their own people, and in earthquake territory, it is irresponsible not to require all corporations and educational institutions to have response programs in place.


Larissa Paschyn is the emergency manager for Amgen in South San Francisco, where she trains the emergency response teams. Previously, she was the external affairs officer for the FEMA Region 9 Incident Management Assistance Team.
 

Sept. 20. Building Partnerships that Promote Safety and Security for Places of Worship and Community Spaces

 https://www.fema.gov/event/building-partnerships-promote-safety-and-security-places-worship-and-community-spaces 

Building Partnerships that Promote Safety and Security for Places of Worship and Community Spaces In support of National Preparedness Month and the Protecting Places of Worship National Week of Action, the DHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the Cyber Security and Infrastructure Security Agency are co-hosting this webinar for state, local, tribal and territorial government partners, first responders and faith-based and community leaders on local and state wide partnership models that promote safety and security for places of worship and community spaces.   Date: September 20, 2022 Time: 2:00 p.m. EDT - 3:00 p.m. EDT Virtual   Register for webinar   Event Details In support of National Preparedness Month and the Protecting Places of Worship National Week of Action, the DHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the Cyber Security and Infrastructure Security Agency are co-hosting this webinar for state, local, tribal and territorial government partners, first responders and faith-based and community leaders on local and state wide partnership models that promote safety and security for places of worship and community spaces.   Presentations will be made by local, state and territory partners working proactively to promote preparedness and security to faith-based and community organization. National Preparedness Month is an observance each September to raise awareness about the importance of preparing for disasters and emergencies that could happen at any time. The 2022 theme is "A Lasting Legacy" The life you’ve built is worth protecting. Prepare for disasters to create a lasting legacy for you and your family. Learn more    *Closed Caption and ASL translation will be available.   Event Resources § DHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Resources § News and Events from the DHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnershi…