UT’s Brian Gard recently completed the National Emergency Management Advanced Academy, enhancing skills that will improve the university’s preparedness in responding to emergencies and disasters.
Gard, director of the UT Office of Emergency Management, was one of 32 graduates of the academy, which took place in Nashville at the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency and Williamson County Public Safety.
“The hazards and threats we face as a campus are constantly evolving,” Gard said. Public safety professionals must remain committed to continued professional development in order to properly serve their communities. A stagnant program creates a vulnerable community and I want to make sure I am continually exposed to industry best practices and education that helps me perform my duties.”
Brian Gard, right, with Patrick Sheehan, director of the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency.
Additionally, Gard increased his network of industry leaders that would help and support the university during a major disaster. The discipline of emergency management recognizes that no one agency or organization can be expected to have all the resources and expertise needed to address complex emergencies, he said.
Higher education emergency management officials must be able to understand the operations and strategies of local, state and federal public safety entities, Gard said.
“The academy allowed me to learn from a group of experts who are filling diverse roles across the spectrum of emergency management,” he said. “I was able to broaden my understanding of where the university emergency management program fits into the overall picture”