Mark Chadwick, Training Officer James Mendoza, Assistant Emergency Management Coordinator San Antonio Office of Emergency Management Developing a Comprehensive Emergency Management Training Program

Having a Vision Evolution of the San Antonio Office of Emergency Management from 2-3 employees to now 20 people including two Training Officers. The process of adding Emergency Management positions through justification. Establishing the need in the community. James Mendoza Assistant Emergency Management Coordinator San Antonio Office of Emergency Management

Envisioning Growth Progression from a single employee conducting city wide training to currently having a full time Training Officer and a part-time Training Officer. Building a regional distribution network. Statewide and National training promotion through the use of Preparing Texas. National National Reach & Recognition Statewide Pilot Program with TDEM Regional Training Hub for South Texas

Progressive Goal Development Short-Term goals: Taking those initial steps. Mid-Term goals: Charting some achievable goals. Long-Term goals: Leverage experts locally to build a world class training center for the State, Region and Beyond. Ultimately the goal is to develop a better prepared response community. NIMS Compliance = Safer Communities = Higher Confidence in Government and Emergency Response = Addressing the Lessons Learned from 911

Redefining First Responders Who is a first responder? The answer to that question should be a driving force in the development of your Emergency Management Training Program. Merging response training with citizens preparedness results in opportunities for building stronger community relationships.

Emergency Management Disciplines Emergency Management Emergency Medical Services Fire Service Government Administration Hazardous Materials Health Care Law Enforcement Public Communications Public Health Public Works

Direction Mark Chadwick Training Officer San Antonio Office of Emergency Management Once you have set your goals you have to decide how to get to your desired result. That begs the question, “Where do you want to go with your Emergency Management Training Program?” Just like planning a trip, you have to map out your route. This leads to a very important issue – Research. 1. Research what is available. 2.Research what facilities your organization has for locations to offer training. 3. Research what training is needed.

Implementing a 3 Year Plan 1 st Year a)Start with what you can readily achieve (Awareness level). b)Schedule your core courses. 2 nd Year a) Plan to implement Operations level training. b) This will include Performance (PER courses) and Management (MAN courses). 3 rd Year a) This is where you begin working in the Technical training. b) For example, HazMat Technician courses. 1 st Year 2 nd Year 3 rd Year

Instructor Development If you don’t always want to be at the mercy of relying on training providers schedules to bring in the classes you want to offer, you are going to have to develop local instructors. You may have personnel that already have instructor credentials. But, you may have to identify personnel that possess instructor skill sets and send them to Train-the-Trainer courses. Avoid the pitfall of using people as instructors that do not have the right skills. All of us have been through classes where the instructor made us cringe for one reason or another; if you utilize personnel with poor instructor skills your training program will develop a poor reputation with responders.

Building a Network of Training Providers

Scheduling A Comprehensive Emergency Management Training Program will have a combination of recurring core courses and a variety of courses targeting the ten Emergency Management disciplines. This is where you begin developing a “Comprehensive” approach to Emergency Management training. We also have to grasp the global view of including the private sector and non-governmental partners. We should be training with the people that we will have to reach out to in response and recovery because that builds our cohesiveness and trust with those that we do not interact with on a day-to-day basis.

Partnerships Training is the perfect time to strengthen our partnerships. Every training opportunity is a networking opportunity! Make a list of the private sector and volunteer organizations that you will rely on in your jurisdictions and include them in your training invitations. Leverage those relationships by making those partners part of your TEAM.

Localized Training Developing local training to meet local requirements is a very important component of emergency management This allows you to tailor training to specific needs Some topics/issues to consider developing: 1. EM-101 : An overview of your Emergency Management operations 2. Emergency Management Plan Executive Training 3. Citizen’s Preparedness Workshop

Facilities When scheduling facilities, have a backup plan in mind “just in case” If you are conducting training in a facility that may be activated for emergencies/disasters, a class could have to be quickly relocated Plan in advance to address the logistics of a class; outdoor activities, receiving advance shipments, equipment and AV issues, and the potential for role-players Don’t forget the impact of road construction and other environmental issues that can affect your training schedules

Marketing The quality of the tools you use for marketing your Emergency Management Training Program is a direct relation to the perceived level of professionalism by responders to your program. The content of your program may be great, however, if the materials you are using to market your program don’t look professional – people will not see the program as professional. Looks matter when you are marketing a product and “Your” training program is “Your” product.

Reporting Capturing your training numbers and demographics is vital. UASI, EMPG, State Homeland Security and local jurisdiction reporting can all be improved if you are accurately capturing your demographics. Your training numbers can assist you in justifying: 1. New or Current Positions. 2. Supply, Equipment or facility needs. 3. Community outreach. 4. Partnership development. 5. Response capability and readiness.

Training Cycle ResearchPlanningSchedulingConductingDocumenting

Questions Mark Chadwick, MEMS Training Officer San Antonio Office of Emergency Management 8130 Inner Circle Drive San Antonio, TX (210)