Beginning with the fall 2009 semester, Virginia Tech is offering students in the National Capital Region a new graduate certificate in Homeland Security Policy.

The university’s Center for Public Administration and Policy (CPAP), School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), College of Architecture and Urban Studies, and Center for Technology, Security, and Policy (CTSP) have joined to develop this certificate program which focuses on domestic issues of security from a policy perspective. The certificate is designed for government and private sector employees, state and local officials, and advanced degree students.

The first course being offered is Advanced Topics in Homeland Security: Critical Infrastructure Protection and Resiliency. The instructor is Col. Bob Stephan, U.S. Air Force (Ret.) Assistant Secretary for Infrastructure Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

“For this program we are combining serious homeland security practitioners with folks who have policy experience and are placing them in an academic role to communicate that knowledge to our students,” said retired Maj. Gen. Bruce Lawlor, a former chief of staff of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and director of the CTSP.

Students enrolled in the National Capital Region program are required to complete four homeland security courses with a major paper option that introduce them to the complexity of the homeland security environment and expose them to a broad array of issues relating to homeland security strategy, policy formulation, administrative and organizational challenges, planning, and operations.

The goals of Homeland Security Policy certificate program are

  • To address the spectrum of homeland security policy to include the threat, prevention, and response and recovery;
  • To provide qualified homeland security professionals in the public and private sectors and graduate students who seek to build academic careers in the field of homeland security policy with the opportunity to study and enhance their knowledge and skill sets;
  • To engage faculty, graduate students, and other scholars in systemic research and study designed to expand the body of homeland security knowledge, develop it as an academic discipline, and improve the quality of homeland security policy making and public service;
  • To leverage the unique knowledge, experience, and education of scholars and practitioners in the National Capital Region to combine theory and practice to produce exceptional educational opportunities for a broad spectrum of students who seek careers in academia, business, or public service; and
  • To serve as a magnet within the National Capital Region for highly qualified faculty with relevant research interests and/or experience relating to national security and homeland security.


Find more information on the Homeland Security Policy certificate program.

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