H. Martin Lancaster
President, North Carolina Community College System
NC Association of Community College Trustees Newsletter Fall 2005
Katrina. Such a pretty name for such an ugly scar on our nation's soul.
Who could have imagined one of America's most distinctive places so brutally smashed by wind and water? Unfortunately, I could. Before I came to the North Carolina Community College System, I was the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, and part of my responsibility was overseeing the US Army Corps of Engineers.
We knew that a major hurricane would wreak havoc on the Gulf Coast. We knew that the levees might not withstand a Category Three hurricane and almost certainly would fail in a Category Four. We knew how much it would cost to make the levees higher and stronger, and we presented that truly staggering cost to Congress and the White House more than once. Eventually work did get underway on improvements, although with much less money than needed.
I don't review this to blame anybody for what happened, especially in New Orleans. There's only so much money, despite what we often want to believe, and all public leaders must make very difficult choices and make careful judgments about risks and priorities.
I do think every community college person in North Carolina should pay attention to some of the lessons our country is learning from the tragedy of Katrina -- and should have learned from the shock of 9-11 and the terrible destruction of last year's storms.
When I watch the police officers, firefighters, nurses and emergency medical personnel, I find myself calculating the number of hours they must have spent in community colleges, earning degrees and certifications. In North Carolina, the vast majority of "first responders" earn all or part of their credentials in community colleges. The expertise our colleges provide is one of the most important resources we have for saving lives, restoring order and preventing the next disaster.
After the terrorist attacks of 9-11, our country focused tremendous efforts on overhauling emergency response. The federal government created a new agency, the Department ot Homeland Security, and appropriated hundreds of millions of dollars for states to use to boost readiness.
Your System Office staff has spend countless hours with staff and faculty from the colleges preparing strong applications for some of this money to fund excellent training programs to update skills and increase the pool of qualified responders. Just as is true with the Corps and the levees of New Orleans, we know what we need, and we know what it will cost.
What I don't know is why thus far the State of North Carolina has declined to fund these training applications. Instead, grants are going for high-tech equipment and vehicles -- which must be operated by people who will then turn to our colleges for training!
More than once during the coverage of the struggles in the first days after Hurricane Katrina, I heard thoughtful reporters mention that perhaps the Homeland Security money that has been spent on "hazmat suits for every town and village" might have been better spent on training, practice and coordination so well-meaning people had a better understanding of how to get the job done.
Never would I suggest that we should deprive emergency personnel of vital equipment. However, buying the equipment without investing in the expertise of those who will operate it makes no sense.
God willing, our State will not have another Fran or Floyd or Isabel anytime soon and will never experience our own 9-11. But if we do, community college folks will be on the front lines as we claw our way back, just as many are now helping on the Gulf Coast. I'll feel better about the job they are able to do once our State puts some of its Homeland Security money into the hands of our skilled instructors.
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