Course Workshop:Interagency Relationships in

Homeland Security

Homeland Defense and Security Education SummitGeorge Mason University

February 28, 2007

Dr. Dale JonesAssociate Professor of Public AdministrationDirector, National Homeland Security Project

Virginia Commonwealth University

Workshop Agenda

• What This Course Is About• Why This Course Should be Taught• How This Course Was Taught• Collaboration in the Public Sector• Updating the Course for the Future• Audience Questions, Ideas, and

Recommendations• Homeland Security (HLS) Course Exercise

What This Course Is About

• “Interagency Relationships in HLS”

• Course genesis

• HLS Spectrum

• Course basis

• Possible course titles

• Graduate-level courses

Course Basis

Homeland security is about government organizations managing and implementing public programs.

Possible Course Titles

• “Public Administration for HLS”

• “Public Management for HLS”

• “Organization Theory for HLS”

• “Multi-Agency HLS Implementation”

• “Interagency Relationships in HLS”

• “____________________ for HLS”

Course Has Mixed Presence in Graduate HLS Programs

• Johns Hopkins University– Graduate Certificate in Homeland Security

• Long Island University– M.S. in Homeland Security Management

• Michigan State University– Certificate in Homeland Security Studies

• Naval Postgraduate School– M.A. in Homeland Security

• University of Denver– M.A. in Homeland Security

• Virginia Commonwealth University– M.A. in Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness

Question

Given that 180,000 employees from 22 federal agencies were merged into DHS, what is there a need to focus on somewhere in a HLS curriculum?

Why This Course Should be Taught

• Views on HLS education• Expanded course basis• Reasons to include course in a

graduate-level HLS curriculum– HLS challenges and areas for research– Principal topics of HLS education– Core curriculum recommendations– Hurricane Katrina lessons learned

Views on HLS Education

• Evolving HLS discipline/field • Wide variety of programs and courses• No one dominant approach• State of affairs has intellectual

freedom which is healthy and beneficial

• Ongoing discussions about core content areas, themes, and topics

Expanded Course Basis

Homeland security is about government organizations—which manage and implement public programs—working together across boundaries to ensure the security of the nation.

Reason #1:HLS Challenges & Areas for Research

• 10 HLS challenges #10: Operating with enhanced

interagency relationships and intergovernmental relations.

• 15 HLS areas for research #11: Collaborative relationships through

partnerships and networks.

Reason #2:Principal Topics of HLS Education

#10: Organization of HLS#11: Sociology of HLS#12: Systems Integration & Administration of HLS

#28: Federalism#33: Decision-Making#35: Interagency Coordination#36: Leadership#38: Politics of HLS

Reason #3:Core Curriculum Recommendations

• HLS/HLD Education Consortium

• Graduate-Level Standards Committee

• Minimum areas of competency– Current and Emerging Threats

– Context and Organizations

– Policies, Strategies, and Legal Issues

– Processes and Management

Reason #4:Hurricane Katrina Lessons Learned

• Recommendation #112: Establishment of HLS professional development program

• Recommendation #113: Establishment of career development process with interagency and intergovernmental assignments

How This Course Was Taught

• Syllabus• Delivery, semesters, and students• Student demographics• Course objectives• Major course streams• Course topics• Variations of relationships and

collaboration• Key definitions

Course Topics

• American system of government• Characteristics of political system• Policy making process• Definitions• Organizing for HLS• Organizational theory• Assessment of DHS at 2 years• DHS reorganization

Course Topics

• Networks and collaboration

• Case study on collaborative networks

• Information sharing

• Intelligence and law enforcement

• Syracuse University web cast

• Leadership for HLS

Variations of Relationshipsand Collaboration

• Within an agency

• Among agencies

• Among federal, state, and local governments

• Between civilian and military sectors

• Among public, private, and nonprofit sectors

• Among nations

Emphasis in U.S. Northern CommandStrategic Vision (2003)

• “new challenge…interagency integration”

• “work with its key interagency partners”

• “extensive interagency involvement”

• “strengthen interagency relationships”

• “new ways…interagency environment”

• “DoD leader in interagency operations”

• “Establish extensive interagency liaison”

• “cross multiple interagency lines”

U.S. Northern CommandResident Agency Partners

• DHS Senior Representative

• Central Intelligence Agency

• Department of State• Federal Aviation

Administration• Federal Bureau of

Investigation• Federal Emergency

Management Agency• Customs & Border

Protection – Air & Marine Operations

• National Laboratories• Transportation Security

Administration• US Coast Guard• US Geological Survey• Canadian Forces

Chaplain • Canadian Political

Advisor to NORAD • Canadian Public Health

Liaison Officer

U.S. Northern CommandLocal Area Agency Partners

• Citizenship and Immigration Services

• Customs and Border Protection

• Department of Interior – Bureau of Reclamation

• Department of Transportation

• Department of Health and Human Services

• Environmental Protection Agency

• Federal Air Marshal Service• General Services

Administration• Humanitarian International

Services Group• National Aeronautics and

Space Administration• National Disaster Medical

System• National Oceanic

Atmospheric Administration• Office of Transportation

Vetting Credentials• US Department of

Agriculture

Key Definitions

• Intergovernmental relations (IGR)• Interagency coordination• Interagency relationships• Partnering• Networks• Collaboration• Collaborative public management

Collaboration in the Public Sector

• Increase in collaborative public management

• Recognition of need to “work together”

• Evidence of importance of intergovernmental relations, networks, and collaboration

Evidence of Importance

• National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA)

• IBM Center for The Business of Government

• Government Accountability Office (GAO)

• Public Administration Review

Updating the Course for the Future

• What necessitates updating course?

• What key events occurred since course last taught in spring 2006?

• What new content should be in the course?

• What textbook changes should be made?

Audience Participation

• Questions

• Ideas

• Recommendations

HLS Course Exercise

• Form into small groups• Use Bellavita and Gordon list of 51

HLS topics• Identify 4-5 courses for HLS

Certificate• Identify 4-6 core courses for MA in

HLS

Thank you!

Dale Jones, Ph.D.

Virginia Commonwealth University

804-827-0925

vdjones@vcu.edu