Online master’s program expected to begin next fall
By Madelyn Pennino
Intelligencer Journal (Lancaster, Pennsylvania)
Copyright 2006 Lancaster Newspapers, Inc.
Lancaster, PA — Millersville University is a click away from offering a new master’s degree program in emergency management.
The new online program, which was approved by the university’s council of trustees Wednesday, will most likely begin next fall.
Henry Fischer, sociology professor and director of the university’s Center for Disaster Research & Education, will direct the emergency management degree program.
Since all classes will be taught online, Fischer said, the program should attract a variety of people working in the emergency management field.
As part of their work, students will analyze different types of disasters and engage in online group activities.
“All of this is real; there’s no ivory tower here,” Fischer said. “It’s all ‘roll up your sleeves.’ ”
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education most likely will approve the degree early next year, Fischer said. Students then would be able to apply for enrollment.
Fischer said only 25 students will be accepted into the 30-credit, part-time program. The degree will take about two years to complete, depending on how many credits students take each semester.
Fischer will teach courses along with seven other members of the MU faculty from other departments, including technology, communications and English.
“This is a group effort,” Fischer said. “It’s a nice umbrella of teachers from different disciplines.”
The degree has not yet been formally advertised, but more than 300 potential students have expressed an interest after learning of the program “through the grapevine,” Fischer said.
Class sizes may be increased, depending on the success of the program.
Fischer, who teaches all his classes online, said there are many benefits to teaching over the Internet.
“I think it adds to the teaching experience. In the classroom, one person talks at a time. In the online classroom, everyone can talk at the same time. There’s a lot of interaction.”
During online class discussions, students can simultaneously type their opinions and answers, which appear on the computer screen in a scrolling fashion.
“It takes a while to get used to,” Fischer said. “But it works.”
Online programs also are convenient.
“It reaches out to a population that’s not in the position to relocate, who have families, kids and houses and can’t leave their jobs,” he said.
MU currently offers minors in environmental hazards and emergency management, but it doesn’t have an undergraduate degree program.
That’s because the field is relatively small, Fischer said, and students who want to pursue emergency management careers need years of hands-on experience in related jobs, such as emergency medical service and police or fire departments.
“We want to help people get jobs, not make them unemployable. There are only so many emergency management jobs a year,” he said.
As part of his research, Fischer visits regions recovering from disasters.
In April 2005, he spent 10 days in Sri Lanka, India and Thailand, researching the effects of the tsunami and the response to the disaster, which devastated much of coastal south Asia.
Last year, he traveled with students and colleagues to New Orleans and Gulfport and Biloxi, Miss., in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He plans to return in October or November.
“I conduct interviews with emergency managers, fire police and first-time responders,” he said. “I identify what went wrong and what went well.”
Many of Fischer’s findings are published nationally. Since 1995, he has been one of the country’s leading disaster specialists and has developed models for emergency management.
Although Fischer said he may never meet the students who enroll in the online master’s degree program, he believes the classes will be enlightening.
“If you (teach online) the right way, the interaction is stimulating and exciting,” he said.