The Teen CERT Train-the-Trainer course, developed by Eastern Michigan University under a competitive training grant from the DHS Office of Grants and Training, has been approved as an official course for national promotion. This approval allows state and local CERT Programs, as well as schools, to access the course and use DHS funding to support it.

“Teen CERT is designed to change the culture of disaster preparedness and response by empowering youth in disaster mitigation,” said Gerald “Skip” Lawver, associate professor for EMU’s School of Technology. The training also prepares students for a role in their school’s disaster response plan as additional trained resources in the event of a disaster.

The train-the-trainer course covers instructional techniques for delivering the training to teens and steps to establish successful CERT training for high school or youth groups, including working with students, parents and school administrators. Participants also are given ideas and direction to maintain and sustain local teen CERT programs, such as partnering with local emergency management, and securing ongoing financial and political support.

Gary Zulinski, project coordinator for the teen CERT grant at EMU, reports that 25 high schools have training underway, with additional high schools coming on board. EMU presented recently at a Camp Fire USA conference and will conduct the Teen CERT Train-the-Trainer Course to Camp Fire Council leaders in Lake Charles, La. The course also being is scheduled for San Francisco and communities in Arizona, Florida, Missouri, New York, and North Dakota. Anyone interested in the Teen CERT Train-the-Trainer Course should e-mail cert@dhs.gov