FCC awarded $1 million for emergency management training
Credit: The Frederick News-Post, Katryna Perera
Frederick Community College was awarded a $1 million grant on Friday from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to develop a three-year, national-level training program for emergency management.
The award was announced by U.S. Sens. Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin as well as Rep. David Trone.
“Well-trained emergency management professionals are crucial to our ability to quickly and effectively respond to crisis situations,” Van Hollen said in a statement. “This funding will help … prepare these dedicated professionals and will ultimately help ensure our communities are ready for a range of emergency situations.”
The Mid-Atlantic Center for Emergency Management & Public Safety (MACEM&PS), which is housed at FCC and to which the funds will be delivered, offers academic programs and professional training to provide knowledge to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters and other threats.
“FCC is grateful for this federal funding which will support the important work of our Center for emergency management and public safety. Our communities nationwide will benefit from the training of emergency personnel through this grant,” FCC President Elizabeth Burmaster said in a statement.
Specifically, regarding natural disasters, the FCC program focuses on developing planning and operational knowledge to ensure that both the government and private industry implement needed systems to sufficiently supply food, water and shelter when disaster strikes.
“This award will allow the MACEM&PS at FCC to continue to develop specialty programming and train emergency management personnel nationwide on the critical tasks necessary to promote safe and resilient communities and by extension, a safe and resilient nation,” said Kathy Francis, MACEM&PS executive director, in a statement.
This is the third training grant awarded to the MACEM&PS. Previous grants allowed for training in responding to terrorist attacks and in developing public-private partnerships to support community resilience, according to a press release.
“We need a capable and competent workforce to protect our communities from emergencies,” Cardin said in a statement. “Through the important work of the [MACEM&PS], these funds will enable individuals who have chosen to dedicate their lives to public safety to be trained right here in Maryland.”
