June 2006 FEMA Conference Report

Bill Stanhope and Gene Carroll attended the 9th annual Emergency Management and Homeland Defense Higher Education Conference hosted by FEMA at the Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, Maryland. http://training.fema.gov/

The purpose of this conference was to discuss the advancement of education in the field of Emergency Management and Homeland Security.  Carroll spoke as part of a panel on the methodologies used in distance learning programs.  The Masters degree program here at the Institute for Biosecurity is headed into its second year.  Many of the participants at the conference appreciated learning about issues they may face as they start up programs in their institutions.

The focus of the curriculum in the Institute for Biosecurity’s program is primarily the management of public health emergencies arising from bioterrorism, naturally occurring infectious diseases, and man-made or natural disasters.  Professionals graduating from our program also need to be well versed in emergency management and understand the other disciplines associated with disaster mitigation and recovery.  It was very interesting to interact more with educators that teach from the Fire/EMT and Justice perspectives and bring those ideas back to our program and increase awareness of these issues in our curriculum.