The University of Alaska Emergency Management department had a busy September. The department celebrated Emergency Preparedness Month and established new initiatives for the coming year, including support and funding from the federal Department of Homeland Security and a number of drills, training and events at UA campuses.

UA Emergency Management Director Rick Forkel brokered a deal with Homeland Security to secure partial funding for delivery of community preparedness initiatives. Representatives from all UA communities will attend a fall conference hosted and funded by the Department of Homeland Security.�

Emergency Management continues to work with campus police to share costs and expertise as they offer training opportunities statewide. A 4–5 day community preparedness seminar is planned for the communities of Bethel, Kotzebue, Dillingham, Nome and Sitka. The University of Alaska has been selected to host FEMA's Multi-Hazard Emergency Planning for Higher Education course on April 12-14, 2011. And beginning in October, UA Emergency Management will offer a series of Incident Command System training opportunities for UA staff.� In July 2011, the first full-scale exercise centric to higher education emergency management will be held at UAF. The exercise will involve campus emergency responders, Fairbanks North Star Borough emergency management, Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and Fort Wainwright.

Activities were held at the Fairbanks, Anchorage and Juneau campuses in association with Emergency Preparedness Month.

UAS: Emergency management at UAS held a student housing evacuation drill and participated in a full-scale exercise at the Juneau airport.

UAF: Campus Safety and Preparedness Week events at UAF included NIXLE registration, fire extinguisher training, fire evacuation drills at student residences, prescription drug disposal, a campus alert notification and communications test, violent intruder presentations, flu information, and more.

UAA:� UAA Safety Awareness Month featured regular safety tips and patrols, campus evacuation drills and big events throughout the month. Some of the featured activities included germ safety training, depression screening, elevator safety, the Anchorage Emergency Preparedness Fair, rape aggression defense training, campus night safety walk and other activities.

For more information on UA emergency management activities, as well as helpful tips and emergency preparedness information, visit www.alaska.edu/risksafety.
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