Assisting the Department of Homeland Security

Friday, March 10th 2006, 2:20 PM - Saturday, March 10th 2007, 2:20 PM

Saint Joseph's to Assist Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence

Paul DeVito, Ph.D., and Thomas Tavantzis, Ed.D., of the University's Early Responders Distance Learning Center (ERDLC), are hard at work helping to develop best practices for communication to the public in the event of a threat to the nation's food supply.

Their work is part of a project with the National Center for Food Protection and Defense (NCFPD), a university-based center established by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Saint Joseph's was named a collaborating institution by the Center, and Drs. DeVito and Tavantzis serve on its risk communication team.

NCFPD, a Homeland Security Center of Excellence, is a national consortium of academic, public sector, and industry partners led by the University of Minnesota. The center's mission is to advance the security and safety of the nation's food supply through research, education, and outreach.

"It's a tremendous honor to be part of such an important and national effort," said Dr. DeVito, executive director of ERDLC. "The fact that Saint Joseph's was chosen to be part of a group that includes Cornell and Harvard University is a testament to the quality of our programs and our Center for Food Marketing."

This Fall, Saint Joseph's co-sponsored a curriculum development meeting for the Risk Communication Project, which brought to campus representatives from several universities across the country and government agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. The project aims to prepare the nation to respond to a terrorist attack on the food supply by developing effective approaches for risk communication to multiple audiences prior to, during, and after bioterrorism incidents. The project also will identify a team of risk communication experts who will be available to assist in the event of a threat to the food supply.

--Kelly Schramm '05 (M.A.)