Centennial College launches two new courses in emergency management this fall

TORONTO, July 13, 2012 /CNW/ - Devastating natural disasters such as last year's earthquake and tsunami in Japan, as well as tragedies such as the Virginia Tech shootings in 2007, underscore the importance of inter-professional emergency preparedness, communications, response and recovery. Such logistical challenges have heightened the demand for emergency-management professionals with highly focused academic credentials.

As part of its Emergency Management and Public Safety Institute (EMPSI), Centennial College is building its complement of courses of interest to individuals working in, or preparing for, careers related to emergency response and management. New this fall are two specialized courses: Managing and Operating a Virtual Emergency Operations Centre (VEOC), and Exercise Program Management.

Managing a VEOC prepares practitioners to lead and participate in the planning and operations of an emergency operations centre by making effective use of technology and social media while responding to an incident, as well as providing the necessary support to the site management teams during scalable single or multi-site incidents. This evening course delivers in a classroom and simultaneously via webcast for distance learning.

Over a two-day weekend, the Exercise Program Management course prepares participants to develop, implement and evaluate any requirements for discussion-based exercises, specifically tabletop emergency exercises. The course is comprised of classroom sessions and practical activities, including a simulated exercise. Upon successful completion, participants will receive provincial certification from Emergency Management Ontario (EMO).

These part-time courses augment two existing courses already offered by EMPSI: Basic Emergency Management and IMS 200 Basic Incident Management System, both of which lead to provincial EMO certification.

For course details, call Ginette Soulieres, EMPSI Manager, 416-289-5000 ext. 8373, or visit www.centennialcollege.ca/empsi. 

Media contact: Mark Toljagic, Communications Officer, Centennial College, 416-289-5000, ext. 7142 or 416-605-6012/[email protected]