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HUD and DHS Solicit Public Comment Through DisasterRecoveryWorkingGroup.gov

DHS and HUD have launched a website specifically designed to solicit stakeholder input on disaster recovery.

From the DHS press release:

"Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan and Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today announced the launch of DisasterRecoveryWorkingGroup.gov—a new interagency website that will allow federal disaster recovery officials to solicit public comments from state, local and tribal partners and the public.

The new website will be used by the federal government’s newly-formed Long Term Disaster Recovery Working Group—co-chaired by Secretary Donovan and Secretary Napolitano—to allow stakeholders to submit ideas for disaster recovery; articulate objectives for recovery assistance going forward; identify examples of best practices; raise challenges and obstacles to success; and share thoughts, experiences and lessons learned."

To view the full press release, click here.

President Obama Signs Emergency Declaration for H1N1 Flu

From the White House blog:

"In an effort to proactively address the ongoing pandemic, the President signed a National Emergency Declaration on H1N1 that allows healthcare systems to quickly implement disaster plans should they become overwhelmed.

As experts expected, H1N1 flu is moving rapidly throughout the country and the majority of states now have widespread influenza activity.  This declaration gives authority for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to waive certain regulatory requirements for healthcare facilities in response the ongoing pandemic. Specifically, healthcare facilities will be able to submit waivers to establish alternate care sites, and modified patient triage protocols, patient transfer procedures and other actions that occur when they fully implement disaster operations plans."

For more information, visit the White House blog site.

New TV series from ICHS will premiere July 29 on the Research Channel

Episode One of the new ICHS TV series, "Bring It Home," will debut on the Research Channel on July 29 at 6 a.m., noon and 6 p.m. A encore is set for July 30 at midnight.

In this Texas A&M University program, Dr. David McIntyre, director of the Integrative Center for Homeland Security, brings in guest speakers to examine the definitions of Homeland Security and strategy from historical, comparative and analytical perspectives.

The first episode includes interviews with:

• Brian Linn, professor of history at Texas A&M, who discusses his book which parallels the Philippine War to the current War in Iraq.
• Jim Olson, senior lecturer at the Bush School of Government and Public Services at Texas A&M, who speaks about his work as a former C.I.A. interrogator.
• Director of the Public Service Leadership Program Joseph Cerami on leading an exercise on international negotiation.
• Daniel Sui, professor of geography at Texas A&M, on geospatial technologies and their vast implications
• Alyssa Stephens, operations officer at the Integrative Center for Homeland Security, on “Ten Key Challenges for Improving Homeland Security” and “Reorganizing U.S. Intelligence.”

For a sneak preview, click here.

Starting March 17: 'Homeland Security: Inside & Out' airs TWICE weekly in D.C.

Our new schedule:

• Tuesdays at noon Eastern with an encore on Sundays at 9 p.m. Eastern on WFED 1500 AM in Washington D.C.
• Tuesdays at 7 p.m. Central on KAMU 90.9 FM in College Station, Texas

Starting on March 17, Homeland Security: Inside and Out will air twice weekly on WFED 1500 AM in Washington, D.C. WFED will broadcast the show Tuesdays at noon Eastern, with an encore Sundays at 9 p.m. Eastern. The program will simulcast on www.federalnewsradio.com and on WFED 820 AM in Frederick, Md.

Over the past three years, Homeland Security Inside and Out has interviewed more than 600 experts, ranging from national leaders (White House, US Senate and House, Department Secretaries, mayors and governors, EU officials, Canadian leaders, and Mexican legislators) to journalists, educators, business leaders and local responders. Learn more about the show, our podcasts and other online resources at www.hlsinsideandout.org.

DHS Office of Strategic Plans seeks candidates for division director post

The Department of Homeland Security Office of Strategic Plans, within the DHS Office of Policy, has just posted an opening for a supervisory policy analyst at the GS-15 level to serve as the director for the Strategic Studies and Analysis Division within the Office of Strategic Plans.

If you know of anyone who would be interest in pursuing this opportunity, please encourage them to apply online through USA Jobs no later than March 9, 2009

To view the vacancy announcement, click here.

Or you may visit www.USAJobs.gov and enter the vacancy announcement number DHSQ09-3019. 

Online video: Episode of PBS series puts focus on homeland security research at Texas A&M

Episode 5: "Homeland Security," of the award-winning public television series "State of Tomorrow", is now available for online viewing.

The first segment features interviews with Dr. David H. McIntyre, director of the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at Texas A&M University; Dr. Neville P. Clarke, director of the National Center for Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense (the FAZD Center); and Dr. L. Garry Adams, associate dean for homeland security at Texas A&M's College of Veterinary Medicine as well as the thematic leader for biological systems at the FAZD Center.

"State of Tomorrow" aired on PBS stations in  Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin, Corpus Christi, El Paso, College Station and 10 other Texas urban markets. It won five Lone Star Emmys.

The Meadows Foundation has awarded a grant to the program's producers that will allow them to  distribute the series to every public middle school and high school in Texas.

• Watch the episode on Windows Media Player
  

Federal News Radio 1500 AM in Washington, D.C. adds ‘Homeland Security: Inside & Out’ to Sunday night schedule starting Feb. 8

Federal News Radio in Washington, D.C., will add public radio program “Homeland Security: Inside & Out” to its Sunday night schedule on Feb. 8 at 9 p.m. Eastern. The program is co-produced by the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at Texas A&M University and KAMU 90.9 FM in College Station, Texas.

The D.C. debut will feature an exclusive interview with former President George H. W. Bush, who will discuss his unusual alliance with former President Bill Clinton to provide privately funded aid to nations devastated by natural disasters, such as earthquakes and tsunamis

The one-hour program will air Sundays at 9 p.m. Eastern on Federal News Radio 1500 AM (820 AM in Frederick, Md.). It will simulcast on www.federalnewsradio.com. The show also airs on KAMU 90.9 FM on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. Central and simulcasts online at kamu.publicbroadcasting.net/radiostreaming.html .

• Download NEWS RELEASE Texas A&M radio show joins Federal News Radio lineup 

ICHS Fellow Munn joins WirelessWERX as 9-1-1 sales director

ICHS Fellow Bill Munn has joined WirelessWERX as the company's director for 9-1-1 and university sales.

WirelessWERX manufactures devices that improve the ability of emergency responders to locate 9-1-1 callers. The company's product delivers exact floor, room number, or house number for any Bluetooth enabled mobile phone.

Munn was one of the first directors of a 9-1-1 district in Texas, serving as executive director of the Tarrant County 9-1-1 District for more than 20 years before retiring in 2006. During his tenure at the district, he also served over nine years on the board of managers of the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), and is the only person to serve twice as president of the organization.

Munn also served on the Texas Commission for State Emergency Communications for thirteen years, having been appointed and re-appointed by two governors, and is an active member of the International Emergency Management Association.

He is currently an adjunct professor for the Integrative Center for Homeland Security at the Bush School of Government and Public Policy at Texas A&M University. He teaches the Emergency Management and Homeland Security course in the Bush School's online graduate Certificate in Homeland Security .

Read the news release.

ICHS director and ICHS Fellow named to editorial advisory board for Homeland Security Television

ICHS Director Dr. Dave McIntyre and ICHS Fellow Col. Randall Larsen (USAF-Ret) have been named to the first editorial advisory board for Homeland Security Television, the world's first online, on-demand network for broadcast quality videos on homeland and cyber security.

A total of eight national security experts with a wide range of backgrounds have agreed to join HSTV's board, including Tom Ridge, the first U.S. homeland security secretary, now CEO for Ridge Global L.L.C.

McIntyre and Larsen are co-hosts of the weekly public radio program "Homeland Security: Inside & Out." McIntyre also directs the graduate Certificate in Homeland Security program at the George Bush School of Government and Public Service (bush.tamu.edu/extended/chls/) at Texas A&M. Larsen is founding director of the Institute for Homeland Security in Washington, D.C.

The Homeland Security Television Editorial Advisory Board will work directly with Executive Producer Dan Verton to review HSTV programming and make specific recommendations on future programming topics and approaches.

The other board members are:

• Parney Albright, former assistant secretary of homeland security and now managing director for CIVITAS Group L.L.C.
• Carlos Solari, former White House chief information officer and currently vice president of security solutions, Alcatel-Lucent.
• Barbara Nadel, principal at Barbara Nadel Architect, and senior consultant to Good Harbor Consulting.
• Dave Drab, principal for security and compliance, Xerox Global Services.
• Charlotte Franklin, deputy coordinator, public-private partnerships, Arlington County Office of Emergency Management.

InfraGard sponsors second-day breakfast keynote at Houston Secureworld Expo

InfraGard is sponsoring the breakfast keynote on the second day of the Houston SecureWorld Expo, April 23-24 at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Dr. Peter Tippett, vice president for research and intelligence at Verizon Business, will speak on the topic, "Quantitative Risk Metrics to Help Improve Security and IT Efficiency," beginning at 9:30 a.m. on April 24.

The breakfast keynote is an open session. To register for this and other open access events (including keynotes, panels, vendor sessions and the exhibit floor) at the expo, click here.

Secureworld is offering an $80 discount off the $195 two day full- conference pass. Register on-line using code: SCS008 .