The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has announced the opening of the application process for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 Emergency Management for Higher Education (EMHE) Grant Program.
The EMHE Grant program supports efforts by institutions of higher education (IHEs) to develop, or review and improve, and fully integrate, campus-based all-hazards emergency management planning efforts within the framework of the four phases of emergency management (Prevention-Mitigation, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery).
Main priorities to be considered for the grant program will be IHE projects designed to develop, review/improve and/or fully integrate campus-based all-hazards emergency planning efforts. A program funded under this priority must use the framework of the four phases of emergency management to:
- Develop, or review and improve, and fully integrate a campus-wide all-hazards emergency management plan that takes into account threats that may be unique to the campus
- Train campus staff, faculty and students in emergency management procedures
- Coordinate with local and State government emergency management efforts
- Ensure coordination of planning and communication across all relevant components, offices, and departments of the campus
- Develop a written plan with emergency protocols that include the medical, mental health, communication, mobility, and emergency needs of persons with disabilities, as well as for those individuals with temporary special needs or other unique needs (including those arising from language barriers or cultural differences)
- Develop or update a written plan that prepares the campus for infectious disease outbreaks with both short-term implications for planning (e.g., outbreaks caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or food-borne illnesses) and long-term implications for planning (e.g., pandemic influenza)
- Develop or enhance a written plan for preventing violence on campus by assessing and addressing the mental health needs of students, staff, and faculty who may be at risk of causing violence by harming themselves or others
- Develop or update a written campus-wide continuity of operations plan that would enable the campus to maintain and/or restore key educational, business, and other essential functions following an emergency
Additionally, applicants who have never received a grant under the EMHE Program will be among the absolute priorities of who will receive the grant.
Other requirements include:
- Applicants must have two (2) partners identified in grant application; one local/state government, the other local/state EM coordinating body
- Applicants must use grant period to establish four MOAs, one each with local/state EM coordinating body, local government, primary off-campus health provider, and primary off-campus mental health provider
- Plans must be developed/implemented as part of the grant must be fully integrated with local/state homeland security plans
- Applicants must implement plans that comply with NIMS
Additionally, the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools (OSDFS) will be hosting a series of four EMHE Grant Question and Answer Calls during the competition period to answer any questions applicants may have about the program or how to apply.
Applications are due May 12, 2010. More than $9 million is estimated to be given out for 26 grants, with a range of $200,000 to $750,000 for each award.
For more information, click here.
