[EAS] Opportunity for us to improve IPAWS training

[Richard Rudman]

Greetings:

Last week I went to the FEMA Emergency Management Institute's distance learning website [ https://training.fema.gov/is/ ] and took new and updated courses on how IPAWS works. I took the courses and received my CEU certificates after passing the online tests.

After taking the test on one of the updated IPAWS course I offered a comment back to FEMA about one of the questions where the right answer included involving including us engineers. I suggested to FEMA that management for radio, TV, Cable and other mass media need to buy in to relaying EAS alerts and warnings. Engineers cannot do this alone. Alerting Authority "management" who takes this course should be trained to understand that outreach just to engineers is not enough.

That sparked a response from Pamela Holstein-Wallace, Project Manager for FEMA's National Continuity Programs, with the following suggestions: 

(1) Encourage your group to take the IPAWS courses and provide any constructive suggestions to me within the next two weeks. If you have never taken an EMI course you can register for free. All the online courses are available at no charge.

        (2) If anyone else who takes the current IPAWS courses offers to review additional training materials FEMA is developing, they should contact Pamela at: 

Pamela.Holstein-Wallace1 at fema.dhs.gov <mailto:Pamela.Holstein-Wallace1 at fema.dhs.gov> 

Since most of us have some time on our hands for the next few weeks or months, why not take the courses and join me in offering to look at the additional FEMA training materials and avail ourselves of the opportunity to help.

Regards,

Richard Rudman