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NEWS | Oct. 2, 2015

National Guard's Homeland Security Institute returns to Harvard University

By Army Lt. Col. James Sahady Massachusetts National Guard

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The National Guard Bureau Homeland Security Institute, in cooperation with Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, recently hosted the fourth annual Leadership in Homeland Security seminar, here, from Sept. 20-25, 2015.

Approximately 55 military and civilian attendees from across the nation participated in the five-day course which focused on the developing leadership skills and organizational capabilities to respond to 21st century Homeland Security emergencies.

Maj. Eric DiNoto, director, National Guard Homeland Security Institute, and his staff have been instrumental in the program’s success over the past several years.

“Since 2011, the Homeland Security Institute continues to grow, expand partnerships, and shape curriculum that is both relevant and timely,” said DiNoto. “To date, the program alumni consists of close to 600 Homeland Security and Emergency Management senior leaders from across the interagency spectrum. HSI is breaking new ground each day, this program has become a brand of its own, and we truly are the leaders in HomelandSecurity.”

Prof. Herman “Dutch” Leonard, Public Management at the Kennedy School and co-chair of the Social Enterprise Initiative at Harvard Business School, opened the seminar by discussing the 2003 San Diego fires crisis. The seminar continued with classes in risk management, responding to emergencies, and managing multi-organizational responses. The cooperation between the military and both governmental and non-governmental civilian agencies was a prominent concept of the training.Prof. Arnold M. Howitt, executive director, Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard Kennedy School and Faculty Co-Director, Program on Crisis Leadership, said, “The key theme is in domestic disasters or international humanitarian assistance situations, people are going to be operating in a setting where there are many organizations where the military is not necessarily going to be in the lead and where collaboration is required.”

Further classes focused on crisis communications, transitioning from disaster response to disaster recovery, preparedness and resilience, and how the political dimension interfaces with operations during a crisis.

The attendees were highly motivated professionals and eager to learn new techniques and strategies.

Two keynote featured speakers during the course were Maj. Gen. Linda Singh, the adjutant general of the Maryland National Guard and Col. William Pallozzi, superintendent, Maryland State Police, who spoke during a panel discussion with the students in the Wiener Auditorium, Kennedy School of Government.

Singh and Pallozzi discussed interagency coordination during the Baltimore civil unrest in April 2015. In addition to the various classes, a number of special guests spoke about their experiences during crises and emergency situations, including Maj. Gen. L. Scott Rice, the adjutant general, MassachusettsNational Guard, Chief Joseph Pfeifer, the first FDNY Fire Chief on the scene at the World Trade Center on 9-11, Juliette Kayyem, lecturer at the John F.Kennedy School of Government at Harvard and Lt. Gen. (Ret.) P.K. “Ken” Keen, associate dean of leadership development, Emory Goizueta Business School and former deputy commander, U.S. Southern Command.

At the end of the course was a dinner banquet and awards and certificate presentation, conducted at the Harvard Faculty Club.

Rice gave opening remarks and congratulated the students and thanked them for their commitment to continued learning in a critical area of Leadership in Homeland Security.”We started on this path of this course four years ago and have grown it into what it is today. The effort, the thought process and bringing all these pieces together to add value on how we look to the future. With you at our side, we have great confidence to build a better place for our children and grandchildren.”

Lt. Gen. Joseph Lengyel, vice-chief, National Guard Bureau, was the keynote speaker and stated: “Thank you to each and every one of you for what you do for our nation every day. We are a better prepared nation today than in the history of this country and I truly believe that. The number one strategic priority of the United States and the Department of Defense is our Homeland defense.” Lengyel and Rice then presented certificates to all students.

A special guest at the banquet and certificate presentation was Capt. (Ret.) Thomas G.Kelly, one of the two living Medal of Honor recipients from Massachusetts. Kelly earned the Medal of Honor while serving in the Navy during the Vietnam War. Leonard closed the banquet by thanking the participants for their diligence and hard work. “This has both been an honor and a privilege to be involved in running this program. We are very thankful for the support that the National Guard has provided for this course.”

 

 

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