EDUCATIONAL PARADIGMS FOR HOMELAND SECURITY

 

Workshop Agenda
Workshop Presentations
Workshop Report

BACKGROUND

 Following the September 11, 2001, attacks the U.S. academic community responded with numerous course offerings, concentrations, certificates, and degree programs for students wishing to further their knowledge of “homeland security.” Major activities now exist in risk assessment, chemical and biological sensors, remediation technologies, and a host of other research areas funded not only by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), but the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Defense (DOD), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and other agencies as well. The question has now arisen as to whether there ought to be an education agenda, in addition to a research agenda, to ensure the nation’s security. Does the post 9/11 environment require job skill sets or public education needs that are not currently being met? If so, which ones are critical and what is the best mechanism to provide them? Although DHS itself has not taken a stand on these questions, the education community has heavily anticipated such needs and has begun to develop community college courses for first responders, full degree programs in homeland security, course offering for homeland security minors, and significant public outreach efforts related to homeland security.

OBJECTIVE

In an effort to more clearly define an agenda for the community, and, ultimately, for the agencies involved in homeland protection, The National Academies’ Policy and Global Affairs division in conjunction with GUIRR assembled a committee to examine these issues. The committee was aided by a workshop on educational initiatives in homeland security held on April 26, 2004. The workshop sought to:

• Discuss whether there are core pedagogical and skill based Homeland Security program needs.
• Audit and evaluate current and proposed education programs focusing on various aspects of Homeland Security.
• Comment on possible parallelism between Homeland Security area studies, international relations, and science policy, as developed or emerging academic thrusts.
• Suggest potential curricula needs, particularly those that involve interdisciplinary aspects.

The results and findings of the workshop resulted in a published report giving guidance on the development of academic curricula for homeland security.

WORKSHOP COMMITTEE

Irwin Feller (Chair), Visiting Scientist, American Association for the Advancement of Science
Johnnie Carson, Senior Vice President, National Defense University
Heather Kiriakou, Intelligence Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
Max Houck, Director, Forensic Identification Program, West Virginia University
Arie Kruglanski, Distinguished Professor of Psychology, University of Maryland
Monica Schoch-Spana, Senior Fellow, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Center for Biosecurity