Connecticut’s and the nation’s violent brush with weather and other natural disasters last year has prompted the University of New Haven to respond with a master’s program in emergency management — billed as the first in the state.
The program begins this fall as part of the Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences.
The UNH master’s degree program will be the only one in Connecticut and only the second in New England. It will be one of 35 programs in the nation, although both the field and academic training for it are growing, authorities say.
“This program will make a difference to the state of Connecticut,” said Wayne Sandford, a lecturer in fire sciences and former state homeland security commissioner. “We have had a number of emergencies in the last year — tornados, an earthquake, a hurricane and a devastating snow storm — and if we’ve learned anything at all, it is that managing these emergencies well makes a huge difference to our citizens.”
