URI awarded $704K for crisis preparedness

SOUTH KINGSTOWN – The University of Rhode Island has been awarded a $704,000 federal grant to update and improve its crisis preparedness, response, mitigation and recovery.
The U.S. Department of Education grant follows $1.9 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in 2008 that led to the establishment of the National Institute for Public Safety Research and Training at URI. Under that grant, URI is also developing an official Department of Homeland Security/Federal Emergency Management Agency training curriculum for colleges and universities nationwide.
The focus of the latest grant is to involve every aspect of the university in crisis planning and response and to become compliant with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Incident Management System.
Initial planning will include the URI Department of Public Safety, URI Emergency Medical Services and the Kingston Fire Department. The project will also include the following URI departments: Health Services, Communications and Marketing, Facilities Services, Housing and Residential Life, and Dining Services and others as the training proceeds. &#8226