Surviving a Declared Disaster: Making Your FEMA Application Manageable

Prepare now for the next disaster by learning how to apply for the FEMA reimbursement program with application hints, hacks, recordkeeping tips, and more.

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Course Status: Canceled

Surviving a Declared Disaster: Making Your FEMA Application Manageable scheduled for February 26, 2025 has been canceled. Registrants will be contacted. Please join our email list to be notified when the next offering is scheduled!

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Course Details

Course Name: Surviving a Declared Disaster: Making Your FEMA Application Manageable
Course Code: ER0331WB25
Date of Most Recent Offering: February 26, 2025 Canceled

Date: February 26, 2025 UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING
Time: 8:30 am – 12:15 pm EST UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING

Location: Online UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING
Format: Live, instructor-led UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING

Registration Fee: $165 per person UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING
Multi-Person Discount Fee: $135 per person (Save when you sign up with a colleague!) UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING

Registration Closes: February 24, 2025 at 3:00 pm UPDATE THIS FOR NEXT OFFERING

Paying with a check, money order, or purchase order?
Payments should be made out to: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Checks and money orders should be mailed to: Office of Continuing Professional Education, Attn: Registration Dept., 102 Ryders Ln, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8519
Purchase Orders can be mailed to the address above or electronically sent to registration@njaes.rutgers.edu.

Course Overview

Disasters happen year round. In recent years, events ranging from freak windstorms to excessively heavy rain and snow events to wildfires have highlighted how vulnerable a community can be to the devastation caused by a disaster. Preparedness is not just having the right emergency equipment; it is also having the right information you need to present your case to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for appropriate financial reimbursement.

Designed with all levels of community/government personnel in mind, this course will present the basics on how to best prepare an application for the FEMA reimbursement program when a disaster is declared. Recordkeeping, discussion of the “damage definition,” and application hints and hacks will make the often-confusing process more manageable.

Be prepared – learn what you need to know before disaster strikes!

  • Conducting Community-wide Damage Surveys
  • Debris Collection Preparation
  • Categories of Damage and Related Filing Guidelines
  • Photographic Recordkeeping
  • Procedures for Follow Up on Post-filing Payment Requests

Meet Your Instructor

MaryEllen Lyons, CPWM, CRP

MaryEllen Lyons brings more than 25 years of work experience in the public sector to the classroom.  A New Jersey Certified Public Works Manager and Certified Recycling Professional, her talent for communication and data analysis, combined with her knowledge of FEMA and state grant requirements, make her the ideal instructor for this topic.  With a proven history of fostering cooperation to meet team, individual, and governmental objectives, she will offer insights and procedures that will assist you in developing both FEMA and other government-sponsored funding programs.

Student Reviews

“Everything was useful to me. All municipalities need to plan information to be ready for the emergency and submit the application to FEMA.”

– Ruby Parra, Mid-Bergen Regional Health Commission

REHS

“Very thorough. [I learned the importance of] staging resources prior to the event.”

– Fred Corbitt, Passaic City Department of Public Works

Assistant Superintendent

“[Instructor MaryEllen Lyons] knows her stuff! [I] didn’t know we had 18 months to submit and ask for extensions.”

– Carol Evans, Little Egg Harbor Township

Recycling Coordinator

Continuing Education Credits

The most recent offering of Surviving a Declared Disaster: Making Your FEMA Application Manageable was approved for 0.3 Rutgers CEUs (3 contact hours), as well as the following credits from professional organizations. We will reapply for similar credits the next time the course runs, but we cannot guarantee credit approval for future offerings.

The Surviving a Declared Disaster: Making Your FEMA Application Manageable course is approved for 0.3 Rutgers CEUs (3 contact hours), as well as the following credits from professional organizations.

State of New Jersey map iconNew Jersey

NJ Certified Public Works Managers (CPWM): 3 Government Contact Hours

NJ Certified Recycling Professionals (CRPs): 3.5 Classroom recertification credits

NJ Drinking Water and Wastewater Operators: 3 TCHs (Approval #01-092202-30)

NJ Health Officers and Registered Environmental Health Specialists (HO/REHS): Rutgers University, NJAES, Office of Continuing Professional Education has been approved by the New Jersey Department of Health as a provider of NJ Public Health Continuing Education Contact Hours (CEs). Participants who complete this education program will be awarded 3.5 NJ Public Health Continuing Education Contact Hours (CEs).

Course Requirements and Policies

electronic devices iconTechnology Requirements

This online course will be delivered via Zoom.

Equipment you will need to access this training:

  • Laptop or desktop computers are required for this class.
  • A microphone is required.

 A week before the start date of class, you will receive an email from Judith Joshua with more details on the class.

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A unique email address is required for each registrant to register and access our courses.

  • If this is your first time registering with us, please provide your own unique email address when registering; do not provide an email address that you share with co-workers.
  • If you have previously taken classes with us and have used an email address that you share with your co-workers or supervisor, your account must be updated with a unique email address. To do this, please send an email to us at registration@njaes.rutgers.edu stating that your email address needs to be changed and include:
    • Your full name
    • The shared email address that needs to be changed
    • Your unique email address
    • A phone number where you can be reached if we have any questions

x icon with circle around itCancellations and Substitutions

A $50 cancellation fee applies for this course. Substitutions are permitted. View our cancellation policy.

Program Questions? We’re Here to Help!

If you have any questions about Surviving a Declared Disaster: Making Your FEMA Application Manageable, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

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Administrative Assistant: Judith Joshua
848-932-7483 
judith.joshua@rutgers.edu

For registration assistance, please contact our Registration Department at 848-932-9271, option 2 or email registration@njaes.rutgers.edu.

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Effective Emergency/Crisis Communications

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Health in All Policies (HiAP)

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Snow and Ice Removal for Municipalities and Public Grounds

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