Homeland Security (HSEC) 603
Spring Semester 2016
COURSE INFORMATION
Class Days: Monday
Class Times: 7:00 PM-9:40 PM
Class Location: TBD
Office Hours Days: Mon. 4:30 PM-6:30 PM
Web page for the program: http://homelandsecurity.sdsu.edu
Lecturer: John Persano
Contact Information: persano@hsec.sdsu.edu
Office Hours also by appointment at other times
Office Hours Location: CSL 120 Viz Center
Course Overview
Practices of emergency management and response in civilian and military settings. Historical development of
management of and response to emergencies and critical incidents. Interrelationship of public, private, and nonprofit sectors on local, regional, national, and international levels.
Enrollment Information
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Prerequisites—None, however the completion of Incident Command Courses 100, 700 & 800 is highly
recommended.
Adding/Dropping Procedures: For adding procedures please refer to the new SDSU Waitlist policy,
http://arweb.sdsu.edu/es/waitlist/index.html. Last day to Drop or Change Grading Option (class only
counts for graduation as a graded class) is Feb 2nd. University rigidly enforces this, so Dropping is possible
after two classes (Jan 25th, Feb 1st). Open University normally can Add/Drop for week longer by paying
Late Fee (to Feb 9th).
Course Structure and Conduct
Instructional Philosophy
I do not lecture, I facilitate discussion. You are in a Master’s Program and in my opinion well beyond the point
where you simply sit in class and listen to the professor while furiously scribbling notes. Each of you has a
tremendous amount to offer the class and I view it as my responsibility to facilitate thoughtful and pertinent
discussion on the assigned topics. With this in mind, it is critical that you complete all the assigned readings and
come to class well prepared and ready to engage.
We will have several guest speakers this semester and due to their schedules/availability we need to be prepared
to adjust scheduled readings/discussions to meet the needs of our guests. Also I will try to arrange one or two
“field trips” to an Emergency Operations Center within San Diego County during the semester.
Writing
I set the bar extremely high regarding your ability to clearly convey your thoughts and opinions in writing. You
have chosen a Master’s Program associated with a field which places tremendous stress on an individual’s
proficiency to present his/her viewpoint in writing. I will go to great lengths to assist you with your writing if
needed/requested. However, please keep in mind that I can only do so much and if you know that writing is not
your strong point, I suggest you take the writing class offered by SDSU.
Course Assessment and Grading
Your grade will be calculated using the following criteria:
 10% Class participation/demonstrated knowledge of the assigned readings.
o I will require that each of you speak in class and will assign individuals each week to lead a
discussion of current events applicable to the subject matter. If you are uncomfortable with
public speaking please contact me and I will be more than happy to assist.
 60% Group Project (Exercise)
o We will conduct an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) exercise in late April utilizing the class as
players, planners, evaluators etc. I will break out the class into various cells (Exercise Planning,
Management, Operations, etc.) by the middle of February in order to start the planning process
in earnest. Each cell will be assigned a mentor from a corps of volunteer emergency
management professionals who will assist the group in attainment of exercise responsibilities.
 30% Essays (10% for each essay)
o You must complete three short essays (500 words or less) this semester. I will break up the
semester into (3) four week “blocks” and post one question per week on BB. For every “block”
you can select one of the four provided questions and write your essay on that topic.
o Each question will be associated with the reading for the respective week as well as the
classroom discussion. All essays are due one week after they are posted on BB.
 Block (1)- Classes, 3-6
 Block (2)- Classes 7-10
 Block (3)- Classes 11-14
Most students should receive a grade between a B and A-. Normally a C is seen as having done poorly, as you have
to obtain a 3.0 or above GPA to graduate. Receiving a C- is very difficult; as this requires that the class be taken
over again because it is a core class. Goal of the class is that people do well, so hopefully no one runs into difficulty.
Excused Absence Make-up Policies: The majority of you are working adults with complex travel and daily lives. I am
more than happy to work with individuals who are not able to make class for valid reasons. All I ask is that you
contact me prior to class and arrange any make-up material. Normally it works best for students to connect to
other students to specifically share the details of what was discussed, assignments, and handouts.
Special Needs Policy
If you are a student with a disability and believe you will need accommodations for this class, it is your
responsibility to contact Student Disability Services at 619-594-6473. To avoid any delay in the receipt of your
accommodations, you should contact Student Disability Services as soon as possible. Please note that
accommodations are not retroactive, and that accommodations based upon disability cannot be provided until you
have presented your instructor with an accommodation letter from Student Disability Services. Your cooperation is
appreciated.
If you have other non-disability related concerns or if you feel uncomfortable, overwhelmed, or unhappy, please
communicate these to the instructor privately either after class or in email.
Course Materials
Introduction to Emergency Management-5th Edition, George Haddow, Jane Bullock, Damon P. Coppola
All students must complete Incident Command Courses 100, 200, 300, 700, and 800 online:
https://training.fema.gov/nims/ and provide proof of completion.
Class (1) 1/25-Introduction
Class (2) 2/1- National Preparedness System, National Response Framework, EOC Management Section, Disaster
Request Protocols (Local, State)
Class (3) 2/8- Stafford Act, National Preparedness/Response Government Architecture
Read: Chapter 1-Historical Context of Emergency Management
Read: Stafford Act FAQs (on BB)
Review: Stafford Act (on BB)
Class (4) 2/15- Introduction to Exercise Design/Interoperable Communications
Read: Chapter 5- The Disciplines of Emergency Management Communications
Class (5) 2/22- Emergency Operations Center Operations, San Diego 2003 Fires AAR
Read: Chapter 2- Natural and Technological Hazards and Risk Assessment
Review: SD 2003 Fire AAR (on BB)
Class (6) 2/29- EOC Operations--Plans and Intelligence, Operations Sections
Read: Chapter 3- The Disciplines of Emergency Management Mitigation
Class (7) 3/7- EOC Operations-Logistics Section, Role of USCG
Read: Chapter 4- The Disciplines of Emergency Management Preparedness
Class (8) 3/14- CA National Guard (Role of NG /Title 32 responsibilities), Marine Emergency Preparedness Liaison
Officer (Defense Support of Civil Authorities)
Read: Chapter 6-The Disciplines of Emergency Management Response
Class (9) 3/21- Public Private Partnerships/Non-Government Organizations
Read: Chapter 7-The Disciplines of Emergency Management Recovery
No Class 3/28- Spring Break
Class (10) 4/4 No assigned readings, Exercise Preparation
Class (11) 4/11 International Disaster Management.
Read: Chapter 8- International Disaster Management
Class (13)-4/18 Tentative date for class exercise.
Class (14) 4/25- Exercise after action discussion
Read: Chapter 10-The Future of Emergency Management
Class (15) 5/2- Summary