Homeland Security and Safety Engineering – Concept, Curriculum and Challenges

Shekar Viswanathan, National University, 11255 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037 and Howard Evans, SOET, National University, 11255 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037

Events from 9/11 have highlighted the need for highly-educated technical professionals in the areas of security and safety. There has been a positive but limited response in terms of academic programs focused on ensuring the security and safety of people and physical assets. The security problem in the U.S. is a daunting task primarily because we have a large influx of people and products into the country, and even the latest technologies detect risks in most but not all situations. Receiving far less publicity are the even greater number of unintended threats that can arise from natural disasters, human error, equipment malfunctions and accidents incident to the manufacture, transportation, use and disposal of potentially hazardous materials. It is with this more comprehensive view in mind that an master's level academic program concentrating on Homeland Security and Safety Engineering has been developed. Since Chemical Engineers have a broad academic background in areas related to Homeland Security and Safety, it is felt appropriate to develop this program under the guidance of Chemical Engineers.

The primary challenge of this program is to incorporate an array of courses in engineering and technology that are complementary, comprehensive, and relevant. A combination of experienced professionals from academics, public service, and private industries were brought together to develop a curriculum that identifies the common fundamentals and practices defining both the theory and effective practice of asset and people protection. Similar input was involved in making the determination to develop ‘online' as well as ‘in classroom' formats. This paper highlights the foundational concepts of this program, describes the involvement of multiple constituencies in its formulation, summarizes the curriculum developed, and provides an overview of challenges facing academicians in this field, including as a function of delivery method.