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News Release

Last modified: Monday, December 7, 2009

IU offers new professional credential in homeland security and emergency management

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 7, 2009

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- The Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs is launching a new graduate certificate program in homeland security and emergency management, offering students and professionals an opportunity to improve their job and career prospects.

The interdisciplinary certificate is designed for people who will work with government at all levels, government contractors, selected private firms and nongovernmental organizations. It will be available starting Jan. 1, 2010.

"Students in the program will learn how government and nongovernment officials can work to prevent and mitigate disasters, how homeland security and emergency management disciplines work together at the federal, regional, state and local levels, and how to develop strategies, plans and programs to make communities safer," said Craig Hartzer, clinical professor and director of the SPEA executive education program at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Students in this program will complete advanced Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) certificates from the Incident Command System (ICS), National Incident Management System (NIMS), the National Response Framework (NRF), and Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP).

The IU certificate requires completion of 15 hours of graduate credits. Credits earned to complete the certificate may subsequently be applied toward a SPEA graduate degree.

The program is targeted to emergency management professionals interested in career advancement who are employed with government, private businesses and nongovernmental agencies -- for example, professionals with the Indiana University Medical Center and its affiliated hospitals. Recent college graduates who are interested in disaster prevention and mitigation can jump-start their professional careers with the certificate.

"Disaster prevention and mitigation in the post 9/11 world requires, more than ever, professional talent in homeland security and emergency management," Hartzer said. "This new certificate also furthers SPEA's mission of training current and future leaders of the nation in the critical areas of homeland security and emergency management."

The program will build on SPEA's relationships with several partner organizations, including the Muscatatuck Center for Complex Operations, the Indiana National Guard and the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center. The certificate will align for students who complete an undergraduate major in public safety and emergency management through SPEA's Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice degree program and who want additional professional credentials.

To be eligible for admission, students must have an undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.5. For more information, see https://www.spea.iupui.edu/graduate.

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