Emergency Management

Kenneth is working with Dr. Hung-En Sung and Dr. Jason Rivera, both of John Jay College, on a research project that is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (click here to learn more about this agency’s efforts to keep Americans safe by countering crime, illegal drugs, and instability abroad). The purpose of the project is to assess emergency management capabilities and the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic in El Salvador.  El Salvador has been both praised by the World Health Organization and criticized by human rights groups for its forceful response to the pandemic and strict enforcement of quarantine regulations.

The first phase of the project included a gap analysis and needs assessment. Ken’s role was to focus on the national police force.  This entailed traveling to El Salvador, interviewing key informants (both official and unofficial), and conducting site visits to various facilities, including the agency’s headquarters, training facilities, communications unit, and local police stations. A technical report was issued, and a special seminar hosted, regarding the research team’s findings and recommendations.

Another phase of the project involved hosting a delegation of key stakeholders from El Salvador for a visit to New York City so they could learn best practices from various emergency management agencies, including the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and Fire Department (FDNY). The delegation visited NYPD headquarters, medical division, a local precinct, special operations, and the joint operations center, as well as FDNY headquarters and the New York City Office of Emergency Management (OEM).

As part of the project’s corrective measures, Kenneth teaches an online course he specifically designed to address the gaps he identified during the needs assessment. The students consist of key representatives from all emergency service providers in the nation. Ken’s course, Law Enforcement During Large Scale Emergency Incidents, is the final course in a five-part series that encompasses all phases of emergency management. The training series concludes with an in-person, three-day session where Kenneth, along with the other module instructors, conducts scenario-based training that reinforces the principles learned during the online sessions.