David Paulison
Administrator, FEMA

NPS Center for Homeland Defense and Security

Five Year Anniversary of The Naval Postgraduate School’s 
Center for Homeland Defense and Security.

Monterey, CA
Tuesday, January 29, 2008


I am truly honored to kick off the festivities tonight as we celebrate the five year anniversary of the Center for Homeland Defense and Security.

FEMA is proud of our efforts to develop and conduct programs for the nation’s homeland security leaders.  Together with the Naval Postgraduate School, we demonstrate very day that federal agencies, working together in a true partnership, can provide opportunities and add value to our nation’s homeland security system.

The Center’s achievements over the past few years are truly amazing.  In 2002 homeland security as a professional and academic discipline was just getting started.  This was a first of its kind effort to develop from scratch the curriculum and materials that would provide our leaders with the training and skills they would need to help protect the American people.  

Since January 2003, 179 local, state and federal officials have gone through the master’s degree program and the Center is now offering the Executive Leadership Program.  This effort is already bearing fruit as the alumni’s research, interagency and intergovernmental networking and on-going leadership the Center is helping to shape the evolution of homeland security.

The Center has done a tremendous job leveraging its programs and talent and now serves as a national resource for hundreds of other academic and government organizations around the nation.

And we are not resting on our past success.  The Center has expanded to provide other offerings to key leaders.  The Mobile Education Team provides seminars that keep governors, mayors and other senior state and local officials focused on homeland security issues by providing them a forum to take a hard look at their policies and strategies.  The Distinguished Graduate Fellowship places select alumni with the opportunity to spend a year serving within DHS, thus giving us the benefit of their training and experience, giving them an opportunity to learn about DHS before returning home, and helping to build those long-term relationships that are essential to our continued success as we develop “engaged partnerships” for the future.

It is not just the beauty of the campus that draws our best and brightest to study here.  Already, the Center has developed a reputation for excellence in its program, and in its student body.  I know that today we lay a strong foundation for success in the future.

As we celebrate the Center’s achievements over the past 5 years, I look forward to working with the NPS and Center leadership to lay the educational foundation for our nation’s leaders for the next five years and beyond.