Community Emergency Response Team

FEMA is offering the CERT Program Manger Course via virtual delivery on the following dates:

• • March 22, 23, 24, 25 (2-6pm eastern)
  • April 26, 27, 28., 29 (2-6pm eastern)
  • July 25, 26, 27, 28 (2-6pm eastern)

Click here to download the FEMA Training Flyer: FEMA 2022 K427 CERT Program Manager Course Flyer

The CERT Program Manager course will be offered during the pre-conference training at the 2022 National CERT Conference, on August 16 – 17.
Visit the conference website for more information : 2022 National CERT Conference.

FEMA is offering the CERT Program Manager Course via virtual delivery on the following dates:

• • April 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14 (1-5pm eastern) *This course is full
  • June 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16 (1-5pm eastern)
  • July 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21 (1-5pm eastern)
  • September 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15 (12-4pm eastern)

Click here to download the FEMA Training Flyer: FEMA 2022 K428 CERT Train-the-Trainer Course Flyer

The San Manuel Bad of Mission Indians is hosting a State Approved CERT Train-the-Trainer course on March 28-30. The course will be held at the San Manuel Commons in San Bernardino, CA. Click here for the course flyer: [link for the CERT TTT Mar 28-30 2022 Registration Form]

The CERT Train-the-Trainer course will be offered during the pre-conference training at the 2022 National CERT Conference, on August 15 – 17.
Visit the conference website for more information: 2022 National CERT Conference.

Cal OES has partnered with FEMA Region 2 and the National CERT Association to host CERT related training webinars. You can sign up to receive emails about upcoming webinars here: https://forms.gle/7Li3qUJp4xJKPaV87

• • Part 1 of 5: Developing and Organizing your CERT Team to the Max (8/23/21) – Presented by Lisa Rubey (New Braunfels CERT). This session will discuss how to bring your CERT Team to the next level and maximize your CERT strengths.
  • Part 2 of 5: Spontaneous Volunteers Lessons Learned in Argentina and Chile (9/8/21) – Professor Duncan Shaw (Manchester University, UK) and Dr. Jenny Moreno (University of Concepcion, Chile).  This talk will present the concepts of spontaneous volunteering, the process of planning for spontaneous volunteers as outlined in ISO22319, and case studies of implementing ISO22391 with governments in Chile and Argentina to create systems for involving spontaneous volunteers.
  • Part 3 of 5: Disasterville (9/21/21) – Presented by James Ray (Utah Division of Emergency Management). Disasterville is an out of the box idea that provides a fun interactive experience that CERT programs can use to strengthen community buy-in, recruit for CERT training, refresh CERT skills and build stronger relationships between the public and professional first responders.
  • Part 4 of 5: Search and Rescue, Lost Person Behavior (10/12/21) – Presented by Dr. Robert Koester.  Lost person behavior is the cornerstone of search and rescue efforts.  Based upon a landmark study, Dr. Koester outlines a definitive guide to solving the puzzle of where a lost person might be found.
  • Part 5 of 5: Maintaining and Revitalizing your CERT Program (10/26/21) – Presented by Teresa Greenhalgh from San Diego County Office of Emergency Services, California.  Teresa shares ideas and best practices for maintaining and revitalizing your CERT program.

You can find more webinars from FEMA on their preparedness webinar here: https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/individuals-communities/preparedness-webinars.

*Please note that after you click the link, Adobe Connect will ask you to log in, you can just hit cancel and the webinar should start.

American Sign Language 101 for CERT Webinar (2/2/22) – Presented by AQI Interpreting Services, this training is going to focus on the communication needs for including Deaf and Hard of Hearing participants in your CERT program. Typically, a person with a hearing loss and uses sign language as their primary mode of communication requires accommodations to fully understand presentations spoken in English. American Sign Language (ASL) and English are not the same. ASL has it own grammar and syntax with just as much richness and nuance as any other language. The instructors will bring a perspective of being Deaf, a sign language interpreter and a person with a mild to moderate hearing loss and learning sign language. Please join us as you learn techniques to enhance your curriculum to include Deaf and Hard of Hearing community members to your class. You will also learn a few survival signs used for Emergency management situations such as hurt, pain, where, water, name, and many more! 

FEMA Resource Typing for CERT Overview and Q&A (10/7/21) – FEMA has released National Qualification System (NQS) Job Titles/Position Qualifications and Position Task Books (PTBs) for three CERT positions:

• CERT Team Leader– a volunteer part of a CERT who directs team activities
• CERT Chief – a volunteer who is responsible for a specific functional area within the CERT
• CERT Volunteer– a volunteer who is a part of a CERT and trains in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization and disaster medical operations

During the first part of the webinar, the FEMA CERT Office will give an overview of the Resource Typing for CERT, guidance from FEMA on implementation, and answer questions.

During the second part of the webinar, the National CERT Association will share how it will be supporting this effort by implementing credentialing lookup through the NCA Member ID card and establishing a national CERT Resource Typing workgroup. 

• Click here to view part 1 of the webinar:  https://fema.connectsolutions.com/pa6hlig70llb/
• Click here to view part 2 of the webinar:  https://fema.connectsolutions.com/pfos4mkuayhe/

The Past Present and Future of CERT Webinar (5/14/21) – To honor the achievements of Frank Borden, FEMA Region 2 National Preparedness Division partnered with the State of California and the National CERT Association (NCA) to host a nationwide webinar on the Past, Present and Future of CERT (Community Emergency Response Team). Frank Borden led the creation of the CERT program in 1985, graduating the first class of community members in 1986. Borden is known as the “Father of CERT.” This session includes presentations from FEMA and other CERT leaders on the current and future landscape of the CERT program.

CERT Best Practices: COVID-19 Vaccine POD Support Webinar (2/19/21) – FEMA Region II’s National Preparedness Division partnered with the National CERT Association to host a COVID-19 Vaccine POD support webinar. This webinar featured county logistic leads responsible for coordinating staffing support and CERT program managers who have been activated to support Vaccine PODs. This webinar is useful for anyone who is interested in supporting Vaccine PODs, including CERT program managers, CERT volunteers and other partners.

CERT Disaster Response Best Practices Webinar (9/24/2020) – The Region II National Preparedness Division in collaboration with the National Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Association held a webinar on CERT Disaster Response Best Practices. This webinar featured speakers from CERT programs across the country who have deployed to disasters. 

2022 National CERT Conference – The 2022 National CERT Conference will be held at the Galveston Convention Center in Galveston, Texas on August 18-20, with pre-conference training August 15-18.  For more information about the conference, visit the conference website at:  2022 National CERT Conference.