Campuses’ Role in Homeland Security
By Elissa-Beth Gross
Student volunteers help FEMA fill sandbags.
The Office of Homeland Security was established under President George W. Bush by executive order (EO) following the 9/11 tragedy. Once founded, Homeland Security Presidential Directives (HSPD) were issued to communicate presidential homeland security policies to the offices and citizens of the United States. Likewise, under President Barack Obama’s term, HSPDs rephrased Presidential Policy Directives (PPDs), were issued to protect Americans and American interests.
HSPDs were written into law to help assure national and homeland security, and PPDs continue to be written or refined today. Their purpose is often to promote preparedness initiatives, and physical and cyber resilience in the face of domestic and foreign threats. Presidential orders call upon both the public and private sector to adopt a Readiness to Act posture; to join forces and coordinate to protect our country.
Campuses should be very familiar with FEMA’s mission area objectives, and work in sync with several directives, particularly PPD-8; National Preparedness that requires implementation of the National Incident Management System (NIMS). Campuses have a duty, and direct stake in following guidance that mandates us, as a nation, to address acts of terrorism, distributed cyberattacks, pandemics, and natural disasters. Moreover, campuses should adhere to PPD-21; Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience, which instructs government and citizens to identify, and prioritize the protection of critical infrastructure/key resources (CI/KR).
Americans must build critical capabilities against high impact threats, including a stronger biodefense. Consistent with the DHS’s National Response Framework; PPD 8 and PPD 21; and, the CDC’s National Strategic Plan for Public Health Preparedness & Response, we need a unified system to enhance homeland security. Campus Risk Solutions® provides a methodology that enables communities to participate in the local, homeland, and national security agenda. Our centralized platform, containing the Campus Incident Management System (CIMS™), outlines exactly how to build risk-resistant infrastructure (RRI) on campus and through public-private partnership. Numerous engagement opportunities are highlighted on the portal, including Citizen Corps’ Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs).
The National Response Framework (NRF) is essentially made of Americans. Strengthening HHS’s Emergency Support Functions (ESFs) annex, in accordance with presidential directives, is our joint responsibility and in our best interest. The CIMS™ allows institutions and organizations to work efficiently to increase security by aligning them with the NIMS and DHS’s National Preparedness Goal (NPG).