Homeland Security (HMLS 495)

Purpose: To provide a final assignment; allowing students to work collectively towards the submission of a Grant Implementation Plan, for approval to their City Council. The students will be placed into groups and play specific characters in the City Government. The simulation begins as soon as the students are assigned to their groups and ends at the completion of their collectively accomplished/presented paper.

Background: The students play leadership positions as part of a Public Safety and Emergency Management Grant Committee in the City Virtual in Virtual County, (state). The city is a township of 50,000 people nestled in the central part of America and is subject to seasonal hazards; tornados and other severe storms being the highest threat. Virtual is the county seat of Virtual County. The region is primarily agricultural with small industries beginning to move into the area. The next largest town is Capital City (state capital) 75 miles away along Interstate 64. Last year the Virtual Emergency Services Grant Committee submitted for a Grant, through the state, to FEMA to receive money to help build up its severe weather warning notification and shelter system. Like many mid-America cities Virtual is not to unfamiliar with severe weather; experiencing tornadic storms in the Spring, Summer, and Fall, with some significant ice and snowfall incidents in the late fall and Winter seasons. In 2002, both the city and county experienced their largest tornado outbreak with three tornados experienced over a 45-day period; killing six and injuring over two dozen. All of the deaths and injuries were as a result of poor warning and sheltering programs. One tornado destroyed an elementary school over the weekend when school was not in session.

The Grant is worth $500K but must be matched by $50K from the region the first year. Total expenditure towards warning and sheltering would amount to $550K. The Grant money can only be spent on Warning/Notification and Sheltering System items to help mitigate the effects of the upcoming tornado seasons. The Grant money’s can be spent on construction, equipment, supplies, and other capital resources, but not on funding any staff members. The grant is only good for one-year but can be renewed for later years in depreciating amounts of $200K, for the following year and $100K for up to but not over five years. No matching funds are required for Grant years 2-5. Full grant execution is $1.0M.

Simulation Objectives:

1. Write a five-page/double spaced essay (not counting cover page, figures/tables, and Reference Page) justifying to the City Council the need for $50K to match this Grant
2. Explain how the Grant funding would be executed, on what, over the five-year period.
3. Support the two above objectives with justifications; using APA style citations and references to show how other programs have worked in the nation to support the mitigation against severe weather effects. No less than six references must be used in the justification and supported in the references.

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