UCF Emergency and Crisis Management Master’s Program Becomes First to Earn NASPAA Accreditation

Highlights

• UCF's Master of Emergency and Crisis Management (MECM) is the first emergency management graduate program to earn accreditation from the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration.

• The online program combines advanced coursework, research and real-world experience to prepare professionals to lead communities through disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery efforts.

• Already ranked the No. 1 emergency graduate program by U.S. News & World Report for the third consecutive year, UCF's MECM is helping establish standards that could shape the future of emergency management education.

For more than a decade, UCF Emergency Management Professor Claire Connolly Knox has helped shape conversations about what the standards for emergency management education should look like.

Now, UCF is helping set them.

This summer, UCF's online Master of Emergency and Crisis Management (MECM), which Knox founded and directs, became the first emergency management graduate program to earn accreditation from the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration (NASPAA).

UCF is one of six programs nationwide - and the only emergency management program - to be newly accredited by NASPAA, recognizing its commitment to high-quality education that prepares skilled emergency management leaders.

NASPAA is considered the global standard for public service education, accrediting programs that prepare students to become leaders, managers and analysts in public service. Earning accreditation requires a rigorous, years-long process that includes self-study, site visits and peer review.

"… this accomplishment is not just for us and our program. We did it to advance our discipline …" - Claire Connolly Knox, UCF emergency management professor

For Knox, a professor in UCF's School of Public Administration, it's a milestone years in the making for a growing discipline she and other emergency management scholars have helped build.

"Talking about accreditation has been a very eye-opening conversation considering that this is still a relatively new discipline, and one we are collectively building and shaping for the next generation as we go," Knox says. "It's a huge milestone, but this accomplishment is not just for us and our program. We did it to advance our discipline, and I'm excited to see how NASPAA accreditation elevates that."

Creating the Blueprint

As natural and human-caused disasters become more frequent, educated emergency management professionals play a critical role in assisting communities with mitigating risks, preparing for crises, responding when disaster strikes and supporting recovery afterward.

UCF's MECM program prepares students to protect and lead communities through those processes with advanced coursework, research, and embedded real-world experience. For the past three years, the program has also held the distinction of being the nation's No. 1-ranked emergency management graduate program by U.S. News & World Report.

That success didn't come by chance.

Claire Connolly Knox, professor and founding director of UCF's Master's in Emergency and Crisis Management program

Before the program launched in 2018, Knox and colleagues designed its curriculum with the discipline's future in mind. They created a framework anchored by NASPAA's universal required competencies and FEMA's Next Generation Core Competencies, with the hope that it could one day help establish a national standard.

Knox credits Mary Ann Feldheim, associate professor emerita in the School of Public Administration, with paving the way for both the program's design and its path toward accreditation.

"For a long time, NASPAA only accredited public administration, public affairs and public policy programs," Knox says. "Under Mary Ann Feldheim's leadership and strategic planning, UCF's master's in nonprofit management program was the first of its kind to be NASPAA-accredited. She set the bar and opened the door for other sub-disciplines of public administration. So much of what I've been able to create for my program has been because I watched and learned from her."

Achieving a Common Goal

A significant portion of the accreditation process was a two-year self-study evaluation that required Knox, program faculty, and the MECM advisory board to collect data, review materials, and assess the program's curriculum.

"It was a wonderful opportunity to communicate both our successes and room for improvement, and to see the program differently," Knox says. "Our goal is [to] prepare students to positively impact the profession and create practical, relevant, evidence-based knowledge to advance it."

That work extends well beyond the classroom. Knox says faculty conduct community-based research that informs course design, while the program draws on experts across many sectors in Central Florida, as well as its extensive alumni network and advisory board.

"Between … teaching, research and service, [the MECM advisory board is] involved in all of it … It was great to see them come together and rally behind this goal." - Claire Connolly Knox

The MECM advisory board comprises representatives from all levels of government, career stages and emergency management specializations, as well as the public, private and nonprofit sectors.

From mentoring students and fundraising to reviewing the curriculum annually and connecting students with experiential learning opportunities, Knox says the board is critical to the program's success, ensuring it keeps pace with the evolving profession.

"Our advisory board is very invested and hands-on, and many of them are also program alumni," Knox says. "They meet with us to review learning objectives to make sure we're still relevant and current with a very dynamic profession. Between the three major buckets of teaching, research and service, they are involved in all of it, and we couldn't do it without them. It was great to see them come together and rally behind this goal."

Raising the Standard

Steven Lerner '13, a UCF public administration graduate, chair of the MECM advisory board and division manager at Seminole County's Office of Emergency Management, says the achievement further positions UCF and Central Florida as national leaders in the discipline.

"This distinction signals to students, employers and community stakeholders that our graduates are prepared to lead the charge in advancing community resilience, safety and security." - Brad Heim, UCF School of Public Administration director

"Emergency management revolves around relationships and building trust among community partners and those we serve during emergencies and crises," Lerner says. "Developing a strong, accredited master's program in emergency management enhances the credibility of the daily efforts emergency managers make to keep our communities safer and more resilient."

Brad Heim, director of the UCF School of Public Administration, says the accreditation also reinforces the growing importance and value of an advanced degree in emergency and crisis management.

"This distinction signals to students, employers and community stakeholders that our graduates are prepared to lead the charge in advancing community resilience, safety and security," Heim says. "It's also a testament to the dedication of our faculty, staff and advisory board - and especially to the visionary leadership and sustained investment of Dr. Knox, whose commitment made this accomplishment possible."

More Topics

College of Community Innovation and Education School of Public Administration emergency management Claire Connolly Knox Brad Heim