Greetings and “Howdy” from Aggieland…
As we continue to address and adapt to the challenges bought on by COVID-19, I hope that you and your loved ones are well. On behalf of the NDPC leadership and our partner consortium, the Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium (RDPC), I offer our sincere thoughts and prayers for those of you that have been personally impacted by this pandemic.
My purpose in this message is to bring you up to speed on the status of training-related activities and restrictions brought on by COVID-19, including information on how to access available training and when we (NDPC and RDPC) anticipate resuming routine training activities.
For the past few months, the leadership of various NDPC and RDPC members have continued to discuss strategies and initiatives to offer training in various virtual and online modes, such as converting select direct delivery courses to web-based deliveries, webinars or podcasts. Our focus in these areas has been pandemic-related courses, protective measures for first responders and courses related to planning and preparing for the upcoming hurricane season. In addition to the training offered and funded by the Homeland Security National Training Program (HSNTP), several consortium members have launched their own training and information courses by utilizing other resources.
Given the varied criteria and logistics associated with the training offered by our NDPC members and our partner RDPC around the country, I highly recommend you visit organizational websites, followed by a telephone call, to access available training information. Each of the NDPC partners will have different requirements to address safety of participants based on training being provided. Also, please remember to keep your SAA (TPOCs) in the loop during this process.
Finally, I want to address is the question of when DHS/FEMA-funded training will resume. On May 26, the NDPC and RDPC were notified that DHS/FEMA will be launching a Training Restart Workgroup sometime between now and June 5, 2020. This collaborative effort will include the NDPC, RDPC and all other federal training partners. Jesse Watkins (current NDPC Ops Committee Chair) and Deyvon Cooper (upcoming NDPC Ops Committee Chair) will co-chair the workgroup and will represent the NDPC and Julie Wilson will represent the RDPC. By July 15, 2020, DHS will decide on when and how to restart training.
It is important to note that when training does start again, our courses may look very different from how we were used to doing things in a pre-pandemic environment. The lessons from COVID-19 impact every DHS/FEMA training lane, and we will continue to innovate our training as we adapt our courses and enter a new leadership phase for the NDPC.
I trust that this information has provided some clarity on the training path forward. Please stay in touch and most importantly, STAY SAFE and STAY WELL!
Sincerely,
Al Davis
Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired)
Chairman, National Domestic Preparedness Consortium
