Whut whut? You didn’t register for the @ProtectDuPage Advanced Severe Weather Seminar?!?
Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?!??!?!?
No worries, here’s a few FREE options for you to participate
Afternoon meetings with the Communications team with the Red Cross of Chicago!
Case studies? Social media? Response training? Media training? Yeppers, all of that stuff for for the L-team to boots-on-the-ground staff.
Looking forward to some upcoming Crisis Comms training with all their staff.
March is marching in as we say hello to another busy month!
First week, will be a few foundation courses focused on Planning P and of course how we as EM pros formulate a proper Incident Action Plan (IAP). These kinds of classes allow EM pros of all levels to hone their skills in training because during a disaster, there are no room for errors or second guessing.
Second week, headed to central Illinois to teach Tornado awareness with one of the premiere national broadcast Meteorologist Dr. John Scala. Then we have our big weather event on Saturday March 16 – Advanced Severe Weather Seminar at Wheaton College! Looking forward to seeing about all of our 500 attendees.
Third week, we are breaking out double-double as we pop FEMA’s Continuity of Operations Class taught by your favorite Master Continuity Practitioner….me! Then on Thursday and Friday, we are nailing down the FEMA EOC Operations course at OHSEM.
Fourth week will be a diverse ICS-300 course with heavy discussion likely on Unified Command, City vs County vs State response, Command issues, as well as wildfire coordination and resource support for large incidents.
If you are counting right, that’s 10 classes.
Glad to support the mission.
Outstanding day to start the FEMA G0291: JIC/JIS Course here at DuPage County OHSEM.
And a solid Miley way to start the day is a party in the USA!
Awwwwwww yeah.
As always, a fine safety brief from John on class including info on 24/7 PIO support from both of us.
With the upcoming exercises, we wanted to give the participants an opportunity to share their experiences as well as how much training has helped them increase their output and network with others.
In class activities concrete key points so that we can all function well with each other. In the end, we hope that nothing happens…but the reality is that it is only a matter of time before we have to work together.
Train like you fight right?
How is DuPage County OHSEM doing it? We are fostering a workspace for collaboration not only in this area, but statewide. Here’s an example.
As stated before, a rising tide raises all ships.
We will learn/train together and we will enjoy our successes together.
And when a crisis hits or a disaster just happens, it will no doubt be a challenging work environment. But thanks to training and exercises, we as PIOs will be able to function well together and shine.
Reminds me of a quote: “When it rains, we roar.” – PIO Ryan S.
Looking forward to seeing all of you at the next big one….in the JIC!
Day-2 of the FEMA Basic PIO course here at DuPage County OHSEM and I wanted to pay my respects…..I mean focus in a bit on press releases.
While just one tool in the tool box, press releases were the primary way to get the info out to media partners about 15 years ago.
Yes, don’t ask. I remember writing my first press release. And no, it wasn’t good.
I am old AF.
However, we wanted to share the dangers of writing bad press releases…so I opted to share one of my favorite ones from Cleveland.
Thanks LeBron.
Mid-morning stop as we open our class up for our media panel.
(L to R)
Daily Herald (@dailyherald) Justin Kmitch (@JustinKmitchDH)
NBC Chicago (@NBCChicago) Chris Coffey (@ChrisCoffeyNBC)
WGN News (@WGNNews) Shannon Halligan (@ShanHalligan)
Lots of discussion including field PIO questions, staging areas, no comment, availability, and of course the dreaded “off the record” conversation. These kinds of conversations are incredibly important as we continue to network with others and enhance our relationships with our partners in the media. Also tweeting from the front of the class is totally acceptable too.
We also had some discussion about the outstanding work that the Aurora Police Department did during their active shooter incident in February. Kudos to all involved including the six new Police PIOs who were immediately pressed into service on their first day of being PIOs.
Literally “Learn it today, use it this afternoon.”
I’ve heard some great panel discussions, but the straight forward information in this panel was refreshing and honest.
I even pressed – if a PIO says to you “No comment” how does that make you feel? Justin’s comment was poignant and worth hearing.
Stay tuned for that interview to be published on #MediaMinutes.
We closed out the day reviewing the interviews and had solid conversations around social media.
Special thanks to our Media Panel guests from the media,
Outstanding class with all our participants!
Starting off another FEMA G0290: Basic PIO course with our public safety pros from across the state!
I am fortunate to grab a few other PIOs for class today – suit up!
Aside from sharing concepts and theory, we also focused on interview skills…
…you know we did the oncamera interviews.
No bones about it, our mantra is to provide the best real-world training out there.
Lots of discussion on staging as well as single role PIOs and what they can do to get the ball rolling.
We also integrated a few activities and exercises into the mix too.
Don’t worry, we took some time to discuss communications strategies. We shared the 8-step communications model and introduced StratComms!
Planning ahead is always a good thing – esp for PIOs. Preparedness is essential in being a good PIO.
Successful first day with everyone. Looking forward to a solid day-2!
For more information, call 202-282-8000
Starting off Day-2 of Advanced ICS and man it’s cold!
Despite the frigid weather, our groups are busy working the ICS magic today.
Saving Central City and Columbiana County is important work!
Outstanding work to all!
Big start to another ICS-400 course here at DuPage County OHSEM! Kicking things off is Director Snow! 
As you can imagine, we have a diverse group with lots to share.
Not only talking about response, but we also discussed recovery as the most challenging part of disasters.
No doubt, It is really our job as Emergency Managers to better prepare our communities to be more resilient after a disaster.
Look closely, you can see people smiling in an ICS class. It’s not folklore, it’s real. Get yourself a good instructor and see what happens. 
Bringing everyone together in a collaborative environment can only provide great benefits for all.
Small or big, rich or poor, our class has great participants from all over the state.
Glad to have participants from countless cities from across Illinois attending.
Looking forward to Day-2 tomorrow!
Who’s the good neighbor and who’s the jerk neighbor?
Shovel your sidewalks folks!
Be an adult and be kind to all your neighbors all the time.
Why? Because during an emergency/disaster, studies have shown that you are likely going to need their help.
Wouldn’t you like to my neighbor? #prepared
Where is @rusnivek? 