WASHINGTON – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and UNCF Special Programs Corporation (UNCFSP) today announced a new partnership to coordinate mutual engagement on job opportunities, preparedness, response and recovery.  FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate and UNCFSP Interim President and Chief Executive Officer Michael J. Hester signed a Memorandum of Agreement and discussed ways that FEMA and UNCFSP, which has a constituency of over 300 minority institutions of higher education, can work to broaden opportunities in emergency management and ensure that disaster preparedness includes the community as a whole. 

 “A key to having a more resilient nation is inspiring a new generation of top-notch emergency managers and UNCFSP is leading this charge,” said Fugate. “This agreement builds on FEMA’s existing successful partnership with this organization and the institutions it serves. We look forward to working together so that every community is engaged in disaster preparedness, response and recovery.” 

The new agreement between the organizations seeks to facilitate greater knowledge, individual participation and career opportunities in emergency management.  Among the terms of the agreement, FEMA will participate in lectures, conferences and other events at minority institutions.  UNCFSP will work with FEMA to distribute messaging, tools, training and other educational and organizational resources available to support community-based disaster preparedness efforts. 

 “The signed agreement with FEMA ensures that future opportunities in emergency management and disaster preparedness are available to HBCUs and their surrounding communities,” said UNCFSP Interim President and CEO Michael J. Hester. “HBCUs have historically been anchors of their communities and will now serve as a natural partner to FEMA and its initiatives.”

The two organizations, through FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute and UNCFSP’s minority serving institutions, have been engaged in emergency management training since 2008. The new agreement stipulates that officials of the two organizations will meet quarterly on the principles of engagement.

UNCFSP works to create connections between the diverse, high-performing workforce of the minority education community and private industry to address the nation’s imperatives. The organization’s minority education constituency includes Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Other Minority Institutions.

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FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

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