Citizen Corps Councils

Arlington County Citizen Corps: Community Partnerships to Strengthen Resilience

Overview
Located just across the Potomac River from the Nation’s Capital, Arlington, Virginia is home to some of the most influential entities in the world, including the Pentagon. Arlington’s multicultural residents live in a mix of old neighborhoods and new “urban village” centers. The population of 193,800 swells to more than 278,000 daily as Arlingtonians and regional neighbors commute to work in federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and corporations located in Arlington County.

On September 11, 2001, Arlington became a victim of a terrorist attack. In their highly lauded response, Arlington’s Fire, EMS, Police and other emergency staff were joined by a continuing wave of mutual aid first responders and volunteers from the region. It was clear that citizens wanted to help and wanted to be better informed and prepared for future emergencies. Capitalizing on a long-standing tradition of inclusive civic activism and a renewed commitment to strengthening preparedness born of personal experience, Arlington County has developed a comprehensive approach to engage citizens throughout the area.

Council Background
The formative stages of the Arlington Country Citizen Corps Council began in October 2001, before President Bush’s formal announcement of Citizen Corps. The four stages of development included:

Public Preparedness Initiative and the Ad Hoc Coalition
The Public Preparedness Initiative began in October 2001 by the Arlington County Civic Federation, an umbrella group of more than 80 local community organizations, and was fueled by the early support and encouragement received from Arlington’s Coordinator of Emergency Services. Working together, the group grew rapidly into the Ad Hoc Coalition which included: the Arlington Chapter of the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the United Way, Leadership Arlington, and CAARR, a post 9/11 coalition of non-profit recovery groups. The Ad Hoc Coalition was responsible for identifying the County’s needs and objectives for better preparing citizens.

Public Preparedness Planning Group (PPPG)
In May of 2002, the Civic Federation hosted a Leaders’ Forum that included presentations by County emergency staff, police, firemen, representatives of the public school system, Arlington Red Cross, and Civic Federation. There, the County Manager announced the formation a Public Preparedness Planning Group, a diverse cross section of community members, to plan the structure of a County-sponsored organization.

The PPPG met throughout the summer and developed the mission, objectives, and structure for a County preparedness group. The main focus of the plan was to integrate volunteer plans and programs into the County’s formal Emergency Management Plan.
Together, staff and community members developed the following mission:
“To bring community leaders together to coordinate the involvement of community members in emergency preparedness planning, mitigation, response and recovery” and “ to provide advice to the County Manager on the development and implementation of the County’s Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) to ensure that the Plan addresses the preparedness needs of all members of the community.”

Citizen Corps Council
In September 2002, as part of the events commemorating the anniversary of the attack on the Pentagon, the County Board and the County Manager announced the official formation of the Arlington County Citizen Corps Council and the first Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training for a pilot team of neighborhoods near the Pentagon. The work over the next few months focused on recruitment of Council members and volunteers for CERT training.

When the Arlington County Citizen Corps Council held its kickoff meeting in January 2003, the Council had more than 70 members representing Arlington’s diverse community, including representatives from roughly 30 local organizations. Volunteers came from civic groups, business partnerships, faith-based groups, nonprofit organizations, the military and local county agencies of police, fire, human services, and schools. The goal of the Council was also established: to help refine public emergency communication, provide public education, deepen volunteerism and community involvement, and coordinate resources.

Strategy
To fulfill its mission, the Council structure includes a coordinating committee, four task groups, and focus groups for targeted sectors of the community.

The Coordinating Committee reviews recommendations from the task groups, coordinates community outreach, and identifies sources of future funding. Below is an outline of the four task groups:

The Public Emergency Communications Task Group recommends how to improve the County’s communication with the public during emergencies.
The Public Education Task Group works with the Office of Emergency Management to develop the education plan, including preparation and distribution of materials, as well as in-person and video presentations.
The Community Involvement and Volunteer Participation Task Group recruits volunteers and assists the Volunteer Office with volunteer management.
The Resource Management Task Group organizes community organizations and resources needed to support emergency preparation and response.

The Council also uses focus groups to seek advice and to engage targeted sectors of the community. Focus groups conducted to date have included persons with disabilities, the elderly, neighborhood business areas, and ethnic/language groups. These groups provided very valuable information on how to tailor communication and education to meet the special needs and interests of different sectors of the community.

Council Results
A successful first year has yielded significant results. Thus far, the Arlington Citizen Corps Council has:

Provided recommendations for public education and emergency communication to the general public, for volunteer recruitment and management.
Participated in joint educational presentations that reached hundreds of neighborhoods, organizations, and business employees, and thousands more citizens through local County media and school cable channels.
Supported VIPS volunteers who participated in a bilingual ride along program, aided in criminal investigations and crime analysis, and functioned as public assistance clerks for non-emergency incidents and information requests.
Encouraged neighborhoods and citizen groups to build Neighborhood Watch as a neighborhood communication system, a means for providing preparedness education, and as a safety net for neighbors in emergencies.
Trained more than 170 individuals in neighborhood based CERT teams:
- Received full support from the fire department who have assigned new fire captains and volunteers to regularly teach CERT classes and provide support for team recruitment and registration
- Collaborated with the State of Virginia to obtain grants that made it possible to expand the CERT classes, provide Red Cross First Aid training, and offer a class for Spanish speakers
- Demonstrated their value when activated to respond to Hurricane Isabel.
Received grant funding to develop a Medical Reserve Corps unit.

Next Steps
Moving forward into the second year, the Arlington County Citizen Corps Council will support and coordinate with the newly organized County Office of Emergency Management to expand the following efforts:

Support for Citizen Corps Programs
Expand County level volunteer support for the four national Citizen Corps programs including program promotion and volunteer recruitment, development of a Medical Reserve Corps, and expansion of integrated Neighborhood Watch and CERT programs at the neighborhood level.
Support to expand programs and events for public preparedness education
- Complete the development of a new preparedness video and PSAs;
- Expand outreach and presentations to residents of high-rise and apartment associations;
- Hold a community education forum targeted toward native Spanish speakers and a forum for persons with disabilities.
Support for County Volunteer Office and development of County Plan for managing spontaneous volunteers
Support for expanding systems for communicating with the public during emergencies
- Provide support for refining systems that reach persons with disabilities;
- Support county promotion of the “ArlingtonAlert” text alert system;
- Support the County work to develop regional alert systems.
Strengthen regional collaboration between Citizen Corps Councils
- Work with other Councils to improve regional coordination of Citizen Corps activities and to share best practice

Additional Information and Resources

Arlington County After Action Report on the Response to the September 11 Terrorist Attach on the Pentagon
http://www.arlingtonva.us/emergency/aar.htm

VIPS Volunteers Web site
http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/Police/PoliceMain.aspx

CERT classes Web site
https://www.co.arlington.va.us/ccc/classes.htm

Joint Educational Presentations and Preparedness Tips
http://www.arlingtonva.us/Portals/Topics/TopicsEmergencyPreparedness.aspx

Plan for managing spontaneous volunteers
http://www.co.arlington.va.us/dhs/volunteer/emergency.htm

Virginia Corps Web site
http://www.virginiacorps.org

Download

A chronicle of the Arlington County Citizen Corps' formation
Arlington County Citizen Corps Council Formation (PDF Version -- 29 KB)
Arlington County Citizen Corps Council Formation (Text Version -- 5 KB)

A chart depicting the overall organization of the Arlington County Citizen Corps
Arlington Organization Chart (PDF Version -- 27 KB)
Arlington Organization Chart (Text Version -- 1 KB)

A brief profile of the Arlington County Citizen Corps and it's various activities
Arlington Profile Intro (PDF Version -- 31 KB)
Arlington Profile Intro (Text Version -- 1 KB)

A document outlining the Arlington County Citizen Corps Council objectives, council structure, groups and work plan.
Arlington Citizen Corps Council Charter and Workplan (PDF Version -- 28 KB)
Arlington Citizen Corps Council Charter and Workplan (Text Version -- 16 KB)

A press release announcing the launch of the Arlington County Citizen Corps Council
Arlington Citizen Corps Council launch press release (PDF Version -- 23 KB)
Arlington Citizen Corps Council launch press releas (Text Version -- 4 KB)

Announcing the formation of the Arlington Citizen Corps Council
Arlington Sun Gazette article (PDF Version -- 14 KB)
Arlington Sun Gazette article (Text Version -- 3 KB)
Article from 9-9-2002

Announcement of public preparedness planning group
Arlington Public Preparedness Planning Group (PDF Version -- 122 KB)
Arlington Public Preparedness Planning Group (Text Version -- 5 KB)

A table listing considerations and commentary of the Arlington County Citizen Corps Council's Recommendations on Public Emergency Communications
Arlington County Citizen Corps Council Communications Systems table (PDF Version -- 181 KB)
Arlington County Citizen Corps Council Communications Systems table (Text Version -- 7 KB)

Arlington County Citizen Corps Council's Recommendations on Public Emergency Communications that were unanimously adopted by the Council's Coordinating Committee on October 2, 2003
Arlington County Citizen Corps Council communications recommendations (PDF Version -- 46 KB)
Arlington County Citizen Corps Council communications recommendations (Text Version -- 3 KB)

An overview of the Arlington County CERT
Arlington CERT Overview (PDF Version -- 49 KB)
Arlington CERT Overview (Text Version -- 3 KB)

A 1-18-2004 sample of the electronic newsletter produced by a CERT volunteer and sent to Arlington County CERT team members bi-weekly.
Arlington Newsletter CERT Update(PDF Version -- 28 KB)
Arlington Newsletter CERT Update (Text Version -- 6 KB)

Article from the winter 2004 issue of The Connection about the valuable role that Arlington CERT members played in the aftermath of Hurricane Isabel. The Connection is published electronically by the North American Emergency Management.
http://www.naem.com/connection/9/isabel9.html
Arlington The Connection article (PDF Version -- 15 KB)
Arlington The Connection article (Text Version -- KB)

Brief overview of the Arlington Medical Reserve Corps with contact information
Arlington Medical Reserve Corps Flyer (PDF Version -- 61 KB)
Arlington Medical Reserve Corps Flyer (Text Version -- 2 KB)

"What is AmeriCorps?" flyer published by the VA Commission for National and Community Service that details the various AmeriCorps funding opportunities
Arlington AmeriCorps Flyer (PDF Version -- 439 KB)
Arlington AmeriCorps Flyer (Text Version -- 3 KB)

The script for an Arlington Country Citizen Corps Council PSA
Arlington PSA I Program (PDF Version -- 31 KB)
Arlington PSA I Program (Text Version -- 1 KB)

A refrigerator magnet developed with the Virginia Hospital Center and Arlington County that holds emergency medical information
Arlington File of Life(PDF Version -- 23 KB)
Arlington File of Life (Text Version -- 1 KB)