May 21, 2024  
2023-2024 Catalog 
    
2023-2024 Catalog

Public Safety and Emergency Management [8008]


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Bachelor of Applied Science

(120 Credit Hours)

Program Manager

Dr. Michael Ryan
941-752-5495
RyanM@SCF.edu

Program Description and Goal

The Bachelor of Applied Science In Public  Safety and Emergency Management  provides third year college students and associate degree graduates in areas such as law enforcement, paralegal, fire science, emergency medical services, emergency management, or an Associate in Arts with an educational pathway that leads to a bachelor’s degree with workforce skills based on the Public Administration and Security Personnel needs of government and of private companies. Coursework includes the areas of general security, crisis and disaster issues, public safety, homeland security, management, administration, and terrorism prevention (including cyber-security). Graduates of this program will find employment opportunities in local, state, and federal governments, colleges and universities, and in private companies. In addition, the program is ideal preparation for further study in graduate school for programs in law, public administration, emergency management, or public policy.

Program Learning Outcomes

  • Apply the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and ethics necessary for success as a professional public employee in the management of a variety of governmental and nongovernmental settings.
  • Demonstrate the ability to effectively lead and supervise a group of managers and/or employees in both governmental and nongovernmental settings.
  • Demonstrate the knowledge necessary to critically evaluate and manage the day to day safety operations of an agency or company.
  • Discuss the needs in a community for coordinated safety action plans and know how to create and manage such plans.
  • Demonstrate the ability to coordinate and manage different types of budgets in the governmental and non-governmental setting.
  • Exhibit knowledge through the ability to apply the National Incident Management System (NIMS) to specific situations.
  • Demonstrate the knowledge to properly integrate appropriate technology into the leadership and management of governmental and nongovernmental work settings.
  • Understand the many forms of terrorism and analyze how to protect an agency or company from external threats.
  • Apply the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and ethics necessary for success as a professional public employee in the management of a variety of governmental and nongovernmental settings.
  • Demonstrate the ability to effectively lead and supervise a group of managers and/or employees in both governmental and nongovernmental settings.
  • Demonstrate the knowledge necessary to critically evaluate and manage the day to day safety operations of an agency or company.
  • Understand the many forms of terrorism and analyze how to protect an agency or company from external threats.

This Bachelor Degree has two tracks:

  • The Public Safety Administration Track provides students in areas such as law enforcement, paralegal, fire science, emergency medical services, emergency management, or an Associate in Arts with an educational pathway that leads to a bachelor’s degree with workforce skills desired in public administrative positions for first responders, in government, and some highly regulated private sectors. Coursework includes the areas of public safety, homeland security, public finance, public management, administrative law, crisis and disaster issues, and terrorism prevention. Employment options include positions such as fire chief, deputy chief, battalion chief, fire inspector, fire marshal, emergency  management coordinator, training officer, captain and lieutenant (fire and law enforcement), emergency management officer, state trooper, emergency management communications center chief and mitigation coordinator. Work settings include fire and rescue departments, law enforcement agencies, emergency management operations and facilities, planning and utilities departments, and private companies as security officers or emergency coordinators. In addition, the Public Safety Administration Program is ideal preparation for further study in graduate school for programs in law, emergency management or public policy.
  • The Homeland Security Track provides students in areas such as law enforcement, paralegal, fire science, emergency medical services, emergency management, or with an Associate in Arts with an educational pathway that leads to a bachelor’s degree with workforce skills based on the Security Personnel needs of local, state and Federal governments and private companies. Coursework includes the areas of crisis and disaster issues, public safety, homeland security, management and terrorism prevention. Graduates of this program will find employment opportunities in local, state, or Federal government, colleges and universities, and corporate security offices. In addition, the Homeland Security Program is ideal preparation for further study in graduate school for programs in law, investigations, Homeland Security, emergency management or public policy.

Admission Requirements


Admission requirements include:

  1. A 2.0 GPA on a scale of 4.0;
  2. An A.S. or A.A. degree from a regionally accredited college or university.

Public Safety and Emergency Management Program Requirements


Subtotal Credit Hours: 27


Homeland Security Track


Core courses (15 Credit Hours)

Subtotal Credit Hours: 15


Subtotal Credit Hours: 15


Electives: 18 Credit Hours


Graduation Requirements for Bachelor’s Degrees


The following general requirements for graduation from SCF must be met by all candidates for the Bachelor of Applied Science and Bachelor of Science degrees. Additional requirements may exist for individual programs.

  1. Students must satisfactorily complete 120 credit hours. For residency purposes, a minimum of 30 credit hours required for graduation must be completed at SCF. All other specific degree requirements also must be met. Developmental education (formerly college preparatory) instruction may not be counted toward fulfilling the total number of credit hours required for residency purposes or graduation.
  2. For purposes of conferring the bachelor’s degree, students must complete at least 30 credit hours of courses numbered 3000 level or above. Of these, at least 15 credit hours must be taken at SCF.
  3. Students must achieve a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 or higher on a 4 .0 scale for all work completed at SCF and a 2.0 grade point average or higher for combined coursework with SCF that includes all transferable credits.
  4. Students must earn a grade of C or better in all upper division program requirements.
  5. Students must complete the general education requirements (36 credit hours) as defined in the Associate in Arts degree. Students who transfer to SCF with either an Associate in Arts degree or a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution are considered to have met the general education component of the degree. Courses will be reviewed for equivalency for students who transfer without an Associate in Arts or bachelor’s degree.
  6. Students must have completed Florida’s foreign language requirement prior to the completion of the bachelor’s degree. Students may meet this competency by:  A) successful completion of two years (four semesters) of the same foreign language officially documented on a high school transcript; or B) successful completion (grade C or better) of two semesters of the same foreign language at a college or university officially documented on a college/university transcript; or C) education completed outside the United States as documented on an official foreign high school transcript that reflects a primary language other than English; D) or Successful completion of two foreign language equivalents through Advanced Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), International Baccalaureate (IB), Cambridge Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE), or UEXCEL exams.  One or more of these exams can be in combination with successful completion of college/university credit in the same foreign language subject area.  Official transcripts from a high school, college and/or university and/or official examination results must be submitted to the educational records office.
  7. For students wishing to pursue another bachelor’s degree, the student must complete a minimum of 15 additional credit hours beyond the first bachelor’s degree as well as any other degree requirements and graduation requirements listed above for the second program. 

SCF reserves the right to make changes in the regulations, offerings, requirements and any provisions announced in this Catalog at any time as circumstances require.

Note(s)


(Note the Gordon Rule and Intercultural course requirements do not have to be met for a Bachelor

Degree Program).

 

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