COURSE: Fire and Emergency Services Response Planning

Course & Section: FES 6724 

Credit Hours: 3

 

Instructor:

Dr. Barbara Klingensmith 

I will be available via email. Sending me an in-class email is the best way to contact me. You may also contact me by phone at 813-312-9675, messages may be left. A second e-mail is drbarbk@hotmail.com.

Introduction

Hello, my name is Barbara Klingensmith. I am a 40+ year veteran of the fire service, EMS, and emergency management services. I have held the ranks from firefighter/EMTP, driver engineer, Lieutenant, EMS officer, Fire and EMS instructor, Training Chief, District Chief and Chief. 

As a service provider in the fire/rescue service I gained a great deal of knowledge and experience. During my career I was fortunate enough to get my BS from Hood College in Frederick, Maryland, my MS from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland and my Doctorate from Walden University in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Plus many courses from the National Fire Academy and the FEMA Emergency Management Institute. 

My experience in the fire services has allowed me to expand my opportunities and be able to learn emergency management. I have published in Fire Chief and JEMS Magazine, higher education journals as well as been an author and technical advisor for instructor text books, fire and EMS training text.

I have been involved with a FEMA Grant program developing curriculum and teaching elected and appointed official about their responsibilities and roles in the event of a disaster or crisis. This program “Leadership in Crisis” has been presented in 40 cities across the country. I am a National Fire Academy contract instructor and many of the classes I teach or have developed closely follow much of the NFA curriculum. Involved with the Higher Education Projects at both NFA and the Emergency Management Institute (EMI) have enabled me to grow and expand my network of contacts. 

I am one of the developers and instructors I'm very pleased you have decided to enroll in the University of Florida program. It is my goal to make this as much of a positive learning experience for you as possible and to help you be successful.

Course Website:    http://lss.at.ufl.edu    https://dcp.ufl.edu/rinker/academics/online/fire-and-emergency-services/

Course Communications:

There is a Class Email tab that can be used to send me an email. Urgent messages you may call me at 813-312-9675 between 9am and 9pm. If I do not answer leave a message.

Recommended/Optional Text:

Emergency Response Planning for Corporate and Municipal Managers, Paul A. Erickson, 2^nd Edition, Butterworth Heinemann (Elsevier, 2006, ISBN: 978-0-12-370503-7

How to Guide – State and Local Mitigation Planning – Developing the Mitigation Plan, FEMA

Additional Resources: 

Use resources on the course site under the Resource tab

American Psychological Association. Please use the most current edition. The APA website is http://www.apastyle.org/manual/index.aspx.

     Here are two quick links for the APA Style

www.clas.ufl.edu/jur/guidelines/documentation.html
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

 

NOTE: To check the truthfulness of contemporary statements, etc. go to this site from the University of Pennsylvania:

http://www.factcheck.org/

http://www.uwsp.edu/psych/apa4b.htm

http://web.uflib.ufl.edu/ct/dltop.html

http://www.rrc.usf.edu/index.html

http://thesaurus.reference.com/

http://www.distancelearning.ufl.edu/students/

http://www.usfa.fema.gov/training/lrc/

 

Course Description:

Comprehensive response planning including theory and value of response planning are examined. Steps to develop a strategic response plan are examined and discussed.

Prerequisite Knowledge and Skills: 

Student participating in, and completing this course are expected to have the skills and abilities to conduct research using a variety of resources, assimilate the information contained in those resources, and make the appropriate inferences.

To be successful students should have knowledge of basic emergency response principles. Students should have the skills to effectively communicate through writing and presentations. In ALL of the writing assignments grammar and content will be considered as well as accuracy. All students should have an undergraduate degree.

Purpose of Course:

It is the intent of this course to identify the role planning plays in fire and services emergency response.

Course Goals and/or Objectives:

Upon completion of this course students should be able to:

1. Conduct a comprehensive response planning analysis.

2. Develop a strategic response plan for their community.

How This Course Relates to the Student Learning Outcomes in the FIRE and EMERGENCY SERVICES MAANAGEMENT program: 

Successful completion of this course will increase the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the student as it relates to competencies needed to successfully guide a fire and emergency service

Teaching Philosophy: 

My educational/teaching philosophy is based on my firm belief that “Lifelong learning is the key to happiness and success”. I believe it is vital for all, from birth to death, to have the opportunity to learn in an environment that not only is safe and fosters learning, but allows the student to learn in his/her own way and time. As a student centered educator and trainer, I focus on the needs and goals of the students, combined with the needs and goals of the curriculum and educational institution. My philosophy also includes a very strong belief that students need to take responsibility for their learning and for their following the rules, policies, and guidelines of the educational institution.

Instructional Methods:

Online (Canvas) -  E-learning uses a combination of a texts, writings by the instructor and other experts, provided resources, the University of Florida Library, and the Internet. The student must complete the homework assignments; participate in the discussion activities and respond to at least 3 other student postings which are assigned to each lesson, and write a research paper/applied final.

Attendance Policy: 

The course is designed in module format. You should check the site at least once a week. You are required to complete the assignments including discussion questions within the time period designated on the module. There will be meetings set up throughout the course.

Academic Integrity

• Plagiarism: Presenting as one’s own the ideas, words, or products of another. Plagiarism includes use of any sources to complete academic assignments without proper acknowledgement of the source.
• Cheating is a broad term that includes the following:
• Giving or receiving help from unauthorized persons or materials during examinations.
• The unauthorized communication of examination questions prior to, during, or following administration of the examination.
• Collaboration on examinations or assignments expected to be individual work.
• Fraud and deceit, that include knowingly furnishing false or misleading information or failing to furnish appropriate information when requested, such as when applying for admission to the University.

Quiz/Exam Policy: 

There is a final project for this course.

Make-up Policy:  

You must contact me if you are going to be late on any assignment and receive credit. Any late assignments will receive a 10% grade reduction for each week it is late.

Assignment and Discussion Policy:

  Assignments

• Assignments should be written in APA style unless otherwise indicated in the assignment.
• Assignments will be graded on accuracy, appropriateness to the assignment, details presented, appropriate citations, references, and resources
• On the date identified in the syllabus the lessons and the assignment(s) for that lesson will be opened and 30 days after the due date the assignment is due.
• The lessons will be open until the end of the class.
• Assignments should be written for the reader who knows nothing about the subject.
• All written assignments should be turned in to the instructor via the assignments section of the virtual classroom in the order in which they are assigned.
• Every attempt will be made to provide feedback every 48 hours or more often if possible.
• Do not go to the next assignment until the previous assignment is completed and turned in.
• Do not turn in more than 3 assignments at the same time.
• When assignments are graded and the opportunity to make corrections is given to you the next assignment will not be graded until the corrections are made. This opportunity will ONLY be offered in MODULE 1.
• If you choose not to make correction, and continue to submit assignment this indicates to the instructor that you are not going to make any corrections. In that event a grade will be given and you will lose the opportunity to improve your grade.
• There will be no opportunity to improve your grade on the FINAL Assignment.
• Assignments 48 hours late will receive a 10% deduction in their grade.
• Assignments more than 48 hours but less than 30 days late will receive a 20% deduction in their grade.
• Assignments more than 30 days late but submitted during the semester will receive a 50% deduction in their grade. 
• If your assignment is 30 days late you will receive a "0"
• Errors that continue to be made in multiple assignments may affect the grades of the individual assignments as well as the final grade.
• It is highly recommended that students keep electronic copies of all materials.
• You will have the opportunity to take some ON-LINE certification short courses offered by the the National Fire Academy or FEMA. These are useful for you to build you credibility and your professional development.
• Please note that any student have less than 75% of their work complete for the semester cannot earn an “I” contract. If you have 75% of the work complete, you can propose an I contract to the instructor.
• If for some reason you are not going to finish this class on time you need to let me know mid term. If I do not receive a request for an extension by that date you will earn a "0" for any assignments not completed.
• If you complete the final assignment and have not completed other assignments first you will receive a "0" for those not completed assignments. 

• It is your responsibility to keep your instructor informed at all times. The instructor does have the right under extenuating circumstances with proper notification to assist the student by extending the above time requirements..

Discussion Rules

• A "discussion thread" is started each time you submit an original discussion topic.
• Responding to the Main Item - A good title tells something of the nature of your personal response. "Response to Discussion 1" is not a very useful title, particularly if everyone in your course uses it.
• DO NOT respond to all of the Discussion Questions before you have read and done the corresponding assignment
• Responding to Other’s Responses - Make sure that you respond on the document intended so that your contribution will line up in the threaded discussion in the right place.
• Netiquette - because discussions are of a public nature, please observe proper "netiquette" -- courteous and appropriate forms of communication and interaction over the Internet (in online discussions). This means no personal attacks, obscene language, or intolerant expression. All viewpoints should be respected. A great primer is located at: http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html
• Quality Discussion Responses such as "I agree," "good question," or "good answer" are not acceptable.
• Any response that is just an opinion, or is unsubstantiated; any response that is carelessly typed, poorly thought-out, grammatically incorrect or confusing; or any response that is disrespectful of another student or any other person, etc., is not acceptable.
• A high quality response applies a concept from the text or course in a meaningful way, or facilitates understanding of the course material or topic.
• Responses should indicate that you have critically thought about the discussion topic and demonstrate that you can apply and articulate the knowledge you are learning.
• Your responses should be well organized and grammatically correct.
• Substantive responses do not just deliver opinions; they offer justification for those opinions and should cite sources when appropriate.
• Expected Quantity of Responses Full participation in each discussion requires that you respond to the initial discussion item and at least two student’s discussion items.
• For full credit, you must have an initial discussion item, a response to at least two students at any time. Therefore, you will have at least three quality posts for each discussion. This is to help treat the discussion as a conversation. Think about how you would feel if you made an observation in a traditional classroom and no one responded.
• Discussion 1.0 gives you, the student, the opportunity to have open forum discussions with your classmates. It is on-going throughout the class. You can come and go in this forum as you wish. It offers an opportunity for you to network and discuss FES and classroom issues. You may post articles or websites that you think may be of interest to others in the class.
• Discussions more than 48 hours late will receive a 25% deduction in their grade.
• Discussions more than 48 hours later will receive a 50% deduction in their grade.

Course Technology: 

You will be asked to explore interactive, media-rich websites using the Internet. Some of these sites might use multimedia components such as audio, video and other similar clips which will require you to download special software programs called plug-ins. These allow your Web browser (e.g.: Internet Explorer, Firefox, Netscape) to access these media. The plug-ins are free and often download quickly) Make certain to install the latest version of Acrobat Reader to access course multimedia.

University Policy on Accommodating Students with Disabilities:

Students requesting accommodation for disabilities must first register with the Dean of Students Office (http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/). The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation to the instructor when requesting accommodation. You must submit this documentation prior to submitting assignments or taking the quizzes or exams. Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the office as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations.

University Policy on Academic Misconduct:  

Academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the University community. Students should be sure that they understand the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/students.php.

Netiquette: Communication Courtesy: 

All members of the class are expected to follow rules of common courtesy in all email messages, threaded discussions and chats.  [Describe what is expected and what will occur as a result of improper behavior] http://teach.ufl.edu/docs/NetiquetteGuideforOnlineCourses.pdf

For issues with technical difficulties for E-learning in Sakai, please contact the UF Help Desk at:

●        Learning-support@ufl.edu

●        (352) 392-HELP - select option 2

●        https://lss.at.ufl.edu/help.shtml

Any requests for make-ups due to technical issues MUST be accompanied by the ticket number received from LSS when the problem was reported to them. The ticket number will document the time and date of the problem. You MUST e-mail your instructor within 24 hours of the technical difficulty if you wish to request a make-up.

Other resources are available at http://www.distance.ufl.edu/getting-help for:

• Counseling and Wellness resources
• Disability resources
• Resources for handling student concerns and complaints
• Library Help Desk support

Should you have any complaints with your experience in this course please visit http://www.distance.ufl.edu/student-complaints to submit a complaint.

The grading will be based on the reports that the students complete and submit. Accuracy of design calculations, clarity and completeness of presentation and timeliness of submission will all be included in the evaluation. REMEMBER....MINIMUM EFFORT EQUALS MINIMUM GRADES

The grade distribution is: Discussion Participation Homework: 25% Project/Paper: 50%.

Assignment	Points or percentage
Grading Discussion Participation	25%
Assignments	25%
Final Project - comprehensive and applied	50%
Total Grade	points

 

Grading Scale

Name:	Range:
A	100 %	to 94.0%
A-	< 94.0 %	to 90.0%
B+	< 90.0 %	to 87.0%
B	< 87.0 %	to 84.0%
B-	< 84.0 %	to 80.0%
C+	< 80.0 %	to 77.0%
C	< 77.0 %	to 74.0%
C-	< 74.0 %	to 70.0%
D+	< 70.0 %	to 67.0%
D	< 67.0 %	to 64.0%
D-	< 64.0 %	to 61.0%
F	< 61.0 %	to 0.0%

 

For more information on grades and grading policies, please visit:

https://catalog.ufl.edu/ugrad/current/regulations/info/grades.aspx

 

Course Schedule

 

	Date	Topic	Reading	Assignment
	Open 05/10/2021 Due 05/24/2021	Module 0 -                                                                                Introduction	Module 0 –Introduction Module 0 -  Preface Module 0 –	Acknowledgment of Syllabus Module 1.0 – Assignment 1 Student Introduction to the Instructor. Discussion – Mod 0 - Introduce Yourself to the class.
	Open 05/10/2021 Due 05/24/2021	Module 1 -Emergency Planning and Management	Module 1 – Chapter 1 - Scope of Emergency Planning and Management Resources – Module 1	Module 1– Discussion  Module 1 –
	Open 05/10/2021 Due 05/24/2021	Module 1 –Emergency Planning and Management	Module 1 – Chapter 2 - Essentials of Holistic Planning and Management Resources – Module 1	Module 1 - Discussion–
	Open 05/10/2021 Due 05/24/2021	Module 1 –Emergency Planning and Management	Module 1 – Chapter 3 - Emergency Response Plan Resources – Module 1 -	Module 1 – Discussion – Module 1 –
	Open 05/24/2021 Due 06/07/2021	Module 2 - Hazards	Module 2 – Chapter 4 -  Physical and Chemical Hazards Resources – Module 2	Module 2 –
	Open 05/24/2021 Due 06/07/2021	Module 2 - Hazards	Module 2 – Chapter 5 - Biohazards Resources - Module 2 Module 2 Chapter 12  – Terrorism
	Open 05/24/2021 Due 06/07/2021	Module 2 - Hazards	Module 2 – Chapter 6 - Medical Surveillance Resources – Module 26	Discussion - Module 2 - Delegating
	Open 06/07/2021 Due 06/21/2021	Module 3 – Hazards and Risk Reduction	Module 3 – Chapter 7 - Personal Protective Clothing and Equipment Resources - Module 3	Module 3 - Discussion – Module 3 –
	Open 06/07/2021 Due 06/21/2021	Module 3 – Hazards and Risk Reduction	Module 3 – Chapter 8 -  Hazards and Risk Reduction Strategies Resources – Module 3	Module 3  – Discussion – Module 3 –
	Open 06/07/2021 Due 06/21/2021	Module 3 – Hazards and Risk Reduction	Module 3 – Chapter 9 - Decontamination Resources – Module 3	Module 3 –  Discussion Module 3 –
	Open 06/17/2021 Due 07/05/2021	Module 4 -Data and Information	Module 4 – Chapter 10 - Data and Information Management Resources – Module 4	Module 4 Discussion 4. -
	Open 06/17/2021 Due 07/05/2021	Module 4 - Data and Information -	Module 4  - Chapter 11 – Monitoring Strategies and Devices	Module 4 Discussion 4. -
	Open 07/05/2021 Due 07/19/2021	Module 5 - Personnel Training	Module 5 – Personnel Training	Module 5 Discussion 5. -
	Open 07/05/2021 Due 07/19/2021	Module 5 - Personnel Training	Module 5 – Personnel Training	Module 5 Discussion 5. -
	Open 07/19/2021 Due 08/02/2021	Applied Final	Applied Final	Applied Final

There