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DHS and FEMA
Updates
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This Citizen Corps News Digest is provided by FEMA's Individual & Community Preparedness Division to highlight community preparedness and resilience resources and activities recently announced by federal agencies and Citizen Corps partners.

DHS and FEMA Updates

Don't Miss the Chance to Nominate a Leader from Your Community!

The Rick Rescorla National Award for Resilience is the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) first national resilience award for superior leadership and innovation by a non-governmental individual (or organization) who exemplifies the qualities and achievements of Rick Rescorla, who exhibited leadership during 9/11 in effective preparation, response, and recovery . The deadline to nominate someone from your community for the first-ever Rick Rescorla National Award for Resilience is quickly approaching. Nominations must be received by 11:59 p.m. on May 15 in order to be eligible! Submit a nomination application to rescorlaaward@hq.dhs.gov and learn more about Rick's extraordinary courage.

Thank You to the Nation's Public Servants

May 6 – 12 is designated Public Service Recognition Week to thank those community leaders working to build a more resilient nation and ensuring we are prepared to deal with any disaster or emergency event. Each and every day these individuals dedicate themselves to serving our communities and improving the quality of life where we live. Whether they respond to emergencies, keep the streets of our neighborhoods safe, or support community preparedness efforts through local Citizen Corps Councils, our public servants continue to make a difference in our daily lives.

Take for example those individual volunteers who assist with disasters through Citizen Corps Councils, Partners, Affiliates, or through Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters. In 2010, Citizen Corps Councils reported over 3 million volunteer service hours were donated to support Council activities. Councils and Council-supported volunteer programs are making a difference throughout communities across the nation. Set time aside to honor these individuals and to THANK them their time, talent and giving spirit.

Citizen Corps Partners and Affiliates Updates

Planning for Preparedness in the Pacific

Kudos to Hawaii and its citizens for being proactive in preparing for disasters! Given the uniqueness of its geographic location, Hawaii is susceptible to many different hazards including earthquakes, tsunamis, floods and other severe weather events. To ensure its citizens and communities are prepared, the state is launching a pilot Disaster Preparedness Education Campaign to encourage Hawai'i residents to fully prepare for large-scale emergencies and disasters, before they happen. Funded through FEMA's Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program the Get Ready Hawaii campaign was developed as a part of a regionalization effort to maximize outreach across the Hawai'ian Islands.

Citizen Corps has partnered with the City and Counties of Honolulu, Hawai'i, Maui, and Kaua'i, to support this important education campaign and promote emergency management and disaster preparedness and awareness to individuals and communities throughout the Islands.

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REMINDER: Empowering Our Youth in Ohio!

Do you live in or around the Columbus, Ohio area? Are you interested in learning more about youth preparedness in your community or organization? On Friday, May 11 , FEMA Region V and Citizen Corps will join the Ohio Emergency Management Agency and South-Western City Schools in Columbus, Ohio for a day-long workshop on implementing youth preparedness in community-based organizations.

The workshop will provide participants with valuable information to start integrating youth preparedness into their organization's existing youth offerings and the steps to launch a new youth preparedness program.

As a workshop attendee, you will receive live instruction and a “how-to” guide on key topics, including:

  • Engaging Partners
  • Identifying Curriculum
  • Implementation
  • Promotion
  • Evaluation
  • Sustainability

Date: Friday, May 11, 2012

Time: Registration begins at 8:30 AM; workshop runs from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM EDT

Location: The Ohio Rehabilitation Service Commission (400 E. Campus View Blvd. Columbus, OH 43235)

RSVP: Click here to create a profile on the Ohio EMA training Website and then register for the FEMA Youth Preparedness Workshop

If you encounter difficulties, please contact Todd Barstow ( TMBarstow@dps.state.oh.us )

Don't Forget to Mark These Dates on Your Calendar!

Follow us on Twitter for more tips and recommendations! We want to hear your suggestions on how we can improve our communications to you, be sure to email us at citizencorps@dhs.gov .

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Learn What Season is Fast Approaching and How Our Nation's Youth are Building a Better America!

Community Preparedness Digest:

A New Season of Hurricanes Begins June 1

Learn What FEMA and Your Peers Have to Say About Recovery

CERT Training for Teens Webinar

Don't Forget to Nominate a Leader for an ICP Award

Thanking Our Nation's Law Enforcement

Hard Working Youth Keep America Strong

Important Dates for Your Calendar

Be heard….Email comments or suggestions to us at citizencorps@dhs.gov .

DHS and FEMA Updates

Hurricane Preparedness Starts with You!

It's that time of year again! The 2012 Atlantic Hurricane Season begins June 1 and lasts through November 30 . As with any disaster, it's critical you prepare yourself, your family, and your community for these severe storms and their cascading hazards (e.g. flooding , tornadoes, landslides, high winds, power outages). Families, individuals and businesses who know their risk and what actions to take can reduce the effects of a hurricane disaster.

Now is an excellent time for Citizen Corps Councils across the country to once again start engaging with their communities about this season's protective actions, available resources and general preparedness activities. FEMA and NOAA are also striving to increase the public's awareness about this dominant season by hosting National Hurricane Preparedness Week May 27 – June 2 .

In the days leading up to Hurricane Preparedness Week, take some time to review the recent webinar Citizen Corps hosted about preparing individuals and communities for these storms. Additionally, Pledge to Prepare and take part in the National Preparedness Coalition where you can connect with like-minded preparedness peers from across the country to share ideas, learn new approaches, and stay up to date on important activities and events!

Be sure to keep an eye out for important Tweets with tips on what to do to say safe and other information from Citizen Corps during Hurricane Preparedness Week!

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REMINDER: FEMA's May Think Tank Call is Coming to You Live from Joplin, Missouri

***REMINDER***

FEMA Think Tank Monthly Conference Call - TODAY

Date: TODAY, May 15

Time: 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. EDT

Call-In: 800-593-0692

Passcode: Think Tank May

Captioning: http://www.streamtext.net/player?event=JoplinFEMA

Join FEMA's Deputy Administrator Richard Serino as he speaks live from Joplin, Missouri on the topic of Recovery during May's monthly Think Tank conference call. Each month more than 500 state, local, tribal, and federal emergency managers, first responders, and other individuals join Deputy Administrator Serino to discuss real-life solutions and ideas generated through FEMA's online forum . Conference calls are open to the general public and are a great opportunity for Citizen Corps Council members to learn and share information about whole community preparedness and best practices.

For additional information on recovery initiatives, please review our community preparedness webinar on the National Disaster Recovery Framework!

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Citizen Corps Partners and Affiliates Updates

WEBINAR ANNOUNCEMENT :

Teen CERT: Connecting School Emergency Management and Youth Preparedness

Friday, May 18, 2012

2:00 p.m. EDT (1:00 p.m. CT/Noon MT/11:00 a.m. PT)

Registration Link: http://rems.ed.gov/index.php?page=training_webinars_DEV_CERT

Please join FEMA and the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students (OSHS) (formerly the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, OSDFS ), and the Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance (TA) Center for this informative webinar on CERT training for teens and the development and implementation of Teen CERT at the K-12 school-level. This webinar will cover the relationship between school emergency management, youth preparedness, and Teen CERT. Specifically, it will address the importance and benefits of CERT training for teens, the key components of developing and implementing a Teen CERT plan in K-12 schools, and creating credibility among students and adults. Hear from Rachel Jacky , the Director of the National CERT Program in FEMA's Individual and Community Preparedness Division and Sue Graves , the Safety Coordinator for the Lincoln County School District in Newport, Oregon as they discuss this important issue! Please register for this webinar here .

Don't Forget to Nominate Individual and Community Preparedness Champions for an Award!

There is still time to nominate outstanding individuals, organizations, Citizen Corps Councils and programs working to make our communities safer, stronger and better prepared for any disaster or emergency event. The Individual and Community Preparedness (ICP) Awards nomination window is open through July 31, 2012 for activities taking place during the period of January 1, 2011 through June 1, 2012.

Winners of the 2012 FEMA ICP Awards will be chosen from ten categories and will be announced in September during National Preparedness Month. They will also be FEMA's honored guests at a community preparedness roundtable event in Washington, D.C.

At last year's event, winners were able to share their ideas, experiences and solutions as well as their advice on how to keep their communities prepared for emergencies. For example, honoree Michael Smith, Fire Chief for the San Manuel Band of Serrano Mission Indians , helped San Manuel develop a “Send Word Now” system which provides text messaging, email and voice alerts to tribal members during emergencies.

Several of last year's honorees also distinguished themselves by involving their entire community in emergency preparedness. Herman Schaeffer, the Director of Community Outreach for the New York City Office of Emergency Management, helped oversee the New York City Citizen Corps program, which collaborated with more than 60 community organizations, government agencies, private sector organizations and volunteer programs to promote emergency preparedness.

Do you know someone who is a preparedness trailblazer like these two individuals? Send your nominations to citizencorps@fema.gov by July 31, 2012 at 11:59 p.m. !

Celebrating Our Nation's Law Enforcement

Join individuals and communities across the country in thanking our nation's law enforcement officers as we celebrate National Police Week May 13 – 19! Whether they are handling incidents large or small, keeping our streets safe, coordinating evacuations or sheltering during severe weather events, law enforcement officers play a crucial role in the emergency management planning and implementation of our communities.

According to Citizen Corps' most recent Council Registration and Profile Data report, nearly half of all Citizen Corps Councils in the United States (46%) support Neighborhood Watch efforts, an important partner of law enforcement nationwide. Additionally, Citizen Corps is partnered with the Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) program which is a great way for individuals to volunteer their time and skills with a law enforcement agency to enhance the capacity of state and local law enforcement. Indeed, the program has been so successful it is now celebrating its 10-year anniversary with the release of new tools and resources to support community preparedness!

Thank you to those law enforcement officers who dedicate themselves to keeping us safe every day!

Our Nation's Youth: Creating an America Built to Last!

Mobilizing the youth in our communities to assist in preparedness efforts is critical toward ensuring a safe, prepared, and sustainable nation. Citizen Corps and its Councils across the country regularly host and participate in youth preparedness activities, roundtables, webinars and workshops to ensure this important constituency is engaged in whole community planning. To further emphasize the importance of young people's contributions toward their communities, and in the lead-up to the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in June 2012, the Obama Administration is challenging America's youth to lend their voices to tell the world what they are doing to foster sustainable communities and help create an America built to last.

The Youth Sustainability Challenge is calling on young people to submit videos of 30 seconds to three minutes long by June 1, 2012 which describe or demonstrate their actions, commitment or accomplishments as an individual or group to make their homes, schools or communities more sustainable or promote sustainability in general.

Winners of the challenge will be announced June 11 and invited to the White House for a special event focused on sustainability leadership. Selected video entries will be featured at the U.S. Center at the Rio+20 Conference.

Follow the challenge on Twitter and submit your video today and let the world know what you're doing to make America more prepared!

Don't Forget to Mark These Dates on Your Calendar!

Follow us on Twitter for more tips and recommendations! We want to hear your suggestions on how we can improve our communications to you, be sure to email us at citizencorps@dhs.gov.

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WEBINAR THIS FRIDAY :

This announcement has been updated to include the correct registration link and to clarify that Teen CERT is for grades 9-12.

Teen CERT: Connecting School Emergency Management and Youth Preparedness

Friday, May 18, 2012

2:00 p.m. EDT (1:00 p.m. CT/Noon MT/11:00 a.m. PT)

UPDATED Registration Link: http://rems.ed.gov/index.php?page=training_webinars

Please join FEMA and the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Safe and Healthy Students (OSHS) (formerly the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, OSDFS ), and the Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance (TA) Center for this informative webinar on CERT training for teens and the development and implementation of Teen CERT at the 9-12 school-level. This webinar will cover the relationship between school emergency management, youth preparedness, and Teen CERT. Specifically, it will address the importance and benefits of CERT training for teens, the key components of developing and implementing a Teen CERT plan in grades 9-12, and creating credibility among students and adults. Hear from Rachel Jacky , the Director of the National CERT Program in FEMA's Individual and Community Preparedness Division and Sue Graves , the Safety Coordinator for the Lincoln County School District in Newport, Oregon as they discuss this important issue!

Please register for this webinar here.

Sincerely,
National CERT Program


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http://www.dhs.gov/