Jasper EMA Director is “Master Certified

Melissa Slocumb, Jasper County’s Emergency Management Agency (EMA) Director was honored at the Jasper County Commission meeting Monday as a “Georgia Master Certified Emergency Manager.”

Charles Dawson, Georgia EMA Homeland Security Director of Operations made the presentation, praising Mrs. Slocumb for what she has accomplished.

“This certification si a remarkable and noteworthy achievement,” said GEMA/Homeland Security Director Charley English. “Very few people have ever achieved this level of professional education in the emergency management profession in Georgia.”

The requirements for the certification are rigorous, Mr. Dawson said, and include nearly 30 special courses including independent study, field-delivered courses, and resident courses taught at the Georgia Pubic Safety Training Center in Forsyth. They cover a wide variety of specialties and disciplines including incident command, hazardous materials, hazardous weather preparedness, crash extrication and exercise design, he said.
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Georgia Certified Emergency Managers must have at least five years of service in the field of emergency management, and have made contributions to the profession through teaching, research, community involvement or published articles. They also are required to obtain 150 hours of continuing education, and to have managed at least one full-scale emergency exercise.

“Jasper County residents can take pride in the level of professional preparedness and commitment that their director has shown,” said Mr. English.

Mrs. Slocumb has worked for the Jasper County EMA for more than six years, and served as director since September, 2010.