Citizen Emergency Response Team (CERT) training is intended to teach residents, community organizations or workplaces the basics of preparation and response skills between emergency services and the people they serve, and the next training session starts March 15.

Class times run Thursday evenings from 6 p.m to 9 p.m. at SeaTac City Hall, located at 4800 S. 188th Street.

Training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall, and require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

For more information or to register, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or fill out an application (PDF file) and mail it to:

SeaTac Police Services
RE: CERT Training
4800 S. 188 St.
SeaTac, WA 98188

Here’s more info:

CERT Classes
The training is a Citizen Corp and FEMA supported curriculum and promotes a partnering effort between emergency services and the people they serve.The goal is for emergency personnel to train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, or workplaces in basic preparation and response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for their area.

Contact Us
For more information or to register for CERT, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or fill out an application and mail it to:

SeaTac Police Services
RE: CERT Training
4800 S. 188 St.
SeaTac, WA 98188

Training Sessions
The training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall. The sessions require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

The next CERT training will begin Marc 15, 2012 (schedule of classes)

SeaTac City Hall
4800 S 188th Street
SeaTac, Washington

Training Topics
Training is designed to cover the following:

• Disaster preparedness
• Fire safety
• Disaster medical operations
• Triage
• Treating life threatening injuries
• Assessment, treatment, and hygiene
• Light search and rescue
• Team organization
• Disaster psychology
• Terrorism and CERT
• Practical final exercise

“This is a fabulous opportunity to grow as an activist, meet people who are as inspired as you are to make change, and learn about issues that will affect our students’ futures,” reads an announcement. “No previous activism experience is necessary, so bring your friends and neighbors!”

Cost is $25 per person.

Registration begins at 8:15 am and sessions will begin promptly at 9:00 am

Coffee and lunch will be provided and parking is free.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Education Activist Training

WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 7 at 9am

WHERE: Highline Community College Building 8–The Student Center (2400 South 240th Street, Des Moines, WA 98198).

COST: $25

REGISTER: Register online here: https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5892/p/salsa/event/common/public/?event_KEY=33467

INFO: “Please join us for an day’s worth of workshops, including a keynote speaker and break-out sessions on the following issues:

• State Funding
• School to Prison Pipeline and School Pushout
• Public Charter Schools
• Universal Pre-Kindergarten
• Disproportionality in Advanced Placement Coursework
• Algebra 1 and College-Ready Curriculum

There is a registration fee of $25 to cover cost of food, facility rental and materials. If this is a financial hardship, please contact Maggie Wilkens: maggie@educationvoters.org in order to request a waiver.:

Citizen Emergency Response Team (CERT) training is intended to teach residents, community organizations or workplaces the basics of preparation and response skills between emergency services and the people they serve, and the next training session starts Thursday, Sept. 15th.

Class times run Thursday evenings from 6 p.m to 9 p.m. from Sept. 15 through Oct. 29th, and the next CERT training will begin Thursday, Sept. 15th at SeaTac City Hall, located at 4800 S. 188th Street.

Training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall, and require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

For more information or to register, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or fill out an application (PDF file) and mail it to:

SeaTac Police Services
RE: CERT Training
4800 S. 188 St.
SeaTac, WA 98188

Here’s more info:

CERT Classes
The training is a Citizen Corp and FEMA supported curriculum and promotes a partnering effort between emergency services and the people they serve.The goal is for emergency personnel to train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, or workplaces in basic preparation and response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for their area.

Contact Us
For more information or to register for CERT, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or fill out an application and mail it to:

SeaTac Police Services
RE: CERT Training
4800 S. 188 St.
SeaTac, WA 98188

Training Sessions
The training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall. The sessions require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

The next CERT training will begin September 15, 2011 (Schedule of classes)

SeaTac City Hall
4800 S 188th Street
SeaTac, Washington

Training Topics
Training is designed to cover the following:

• Disaster preparedness
• Fire safety
• Disaster medical operations
• Triage
• Treating life threatening injuries
• Assessment, treatment, and hygiene
• Light search and rescue
• Team organization
• Disaster psychology
• Terrorism and CERT
• Practical final exercise

Seattle Police Chief John Diaz, King County Sheriff Sue Rahr, and Joe Hawe, commander of the Washington Criminal Justice Training Center, will hold a press conference this afternoon (Monday April 25th), to announce a cooperative agreement to utilize the training center, which is located in Burien.

“The three will announce a new form of ongoing training for their officers and deputies to improve the quality of individual police interactions with citizens…essentially interactions on the street,” said Sgt. John Urquhart in a statement. “It will directly impact the lawful behavior and willingness of residents to work with police to solve crimes and improve neighborhood safety.”

“This is this the first time in recent memory that the Sheriff’s Office, the Seattle Police Department, and the Criminal Justice Training Center have collaborated to produce a common training curriculum,” said SPD Chief John Diaz. “It will directly impact nearly 2,000 police officers and how they deal with the public.”

The Washington Criminal Justice Training Center is located at 19010 1st Avenue South in Burien.

UPDATE 4/25/11 6 p.m.: Here’s a statement on this announcement from the Seattle Police Department:

The Seattle Police Department and the King County Sheriff’s Office have formed a unique partnership with the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission to develop a curriculum to improve the way police officers are trained to interact with people.  For the past decade, police training has focused on tools and physical tactics for keeping officers and citizens safe.  While these methods have improved the safety of both officers and citizens, they have done little to improve the public’s trust and confidence in their police.

For over 30 years, a compelling body of research has been emerging that shows public trust and confidence in police is not just a good public relations strategy.  It directly impacts lawful behavior and the willingness of residents to work with the police to solve crime and improve neighborhood safety.  Public trust also leads to greater cooperation and improves officer and citizen safety by reducing the necessity for police to resort to physical force to maintain order.

The research also shows that public trust is not closely related to the crime rate, but rather is a direct result of the quality and outcomes of police interactions with the people they serve.  To improve public trust, we must improve the quality of those individual police interactions.

“Justice Based Policing” is an established terminology that simply describes the strategy officers will be trained to use during individual interactions on the street.  It is a logical extension of the Community Oriented Policing model that we have been working on for the past 20 years—and an opportunity to help move community policing, community relationships, and public safety to a new level.

This strategy employs four basic principles that have been extensively studied and validated to improve interpersonal contacts.  These four basic principles are the “Four Pillars” that define the concept and practice of Justice Based Policing.

L.E.E.D. represents the four pillars– and stands for Listen and Explain with Equity and Dignity.

The acronym was developed by King County Sheriff Sue Rahr as a practical way for officers to understand and apply the concept of Justice Based Policing– as well reinforce and define the behaviors and practices that make it real in the street.

The first two pillars of the LEED Model direct the officers in what to do, (Listen and Explain) the second two direct the officers in how to do it (with Equity and Dignity).

These principles are so basic, and so obviously based on common sense, it hardly seems necessary to devote a training curriculum their study.  However, what has become increasingly clear is that during many police contacts on the street, the focus is primarily on physical tactics and quick resolution.

The four principles have not been a strong enough focus of the total training of police officers historically. We need to address that now for the future of policing.  Because we know from a significant body of research that people who are not listened to, who don’t understand why an officer is taking action, who feel they are being unfairly targeted, and who feel disrespected, will grow to distrust police and will not cooperate with them and will be less likely to obey laws.  Over time, and across hundreds of interactions, public trust degrades.

“Research suggests that a procedural approach to citizen interaction may enhance the safety of both law enforcement officers and community residents. However, a procedural justice-based policing strategy doesn’t mean the police should not resort to the use of force when faced with a hostile individual. It simply means that to the extent that the police can elicit compliance without the use of force, the police officers, the institution of policing, and society in general will benefit greatly.” (Sunshine & Tyler, 2003).

The purpose of the Washington State Justice Based Policing Initiative is to build public trust by ensuring that every police officer, supervisor, and leader is trained to understand the power of following these four principles.  The initiative has two core challenges: to develop and employ these strategies into current policing organizational structures, and to develop and institutionalize a new curriculum around the LEED Model for future police training.

The first step is to address our current environment. The King County Sheriff’s Office and the Seattle Police Department will reinforce LEED training by setting clear policy and practice requirements for how officers and leaders conduct personal interactions.  Implementation will include ongoing evaluation and monitoring conducted in partnership with Seattle University and other professional organizations at specific intervals to determine if police are following the LEED principles and to determine if pubic trust is improving.

For developing a long term approach to applying the LEED Model, the Seattle Police Department, King County Sheriff’s Office, and the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission have submitted a joint grant application to the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services requesting additional funding and technical assistance to ensure that the Justice Based Policing Initiative is not only successful in Washington State, but can be replicated in any police agency in the country.

Early feedback from police leaders across the country has been very positive.  The partnership between SPD and KCSO, the two largest local police departments in Washington, and the State Training Commission, is considered extraordinary and unique in the entire country.

Sustainable Burien recently held a “very successful” meeting on Disaster Preparedness, and now they’re holding a followup training this Sunday, Jan. 23rd, for people wanting to learn how to host it in their own neighborhoods.

Attendance is FREE, and by showing up you’ll meet with other people looking to host the Map Your Neighborhood disaster preparedness program in their own neighborhoods.

Please note that this week’s meeting will be held in a private home, so to attend, please email Rebecca Dare at rdare2@yahoo.com or call 206-243-9366.

It’s a great, locally-grown way to make sure you and your neighborhood are ready for just about anything.

Here are the event details:

WHAT: Sustainable Burien’s Disaster Preparedness Followup Training

WHEN:  Sunday, Jan. 23rd, from 2pm -4pm.

WHERE: At a private home – to RSVP, or for more information, email rdare2@yahoo.com or call 206-243-9366.

Burien Goodwill’s Job Training and Education Center will be offering FREE English and Computer classes, with registration taking place on Monday, Dec. 13th and Tuesday, Dec. 14th.

These free eight-week sessions will run from Jan. 3rd through Feb. 24, 2011 at the Burien Goodwill, located at 1031 SW 128th Street.

Here’s more info from an email:

Register for Burien Goodwill’s FREE classes on Dec. 13 & 14!

Students can learn English and computers

On Dec. 13 and 14, Goodwill’s Job Training and Education Center in Burien, located at 1031 SW 128th St., will register students for free classes in the eight-week session that runs from Jan. 3 through Feb. 24, 2011.

Registration will take place according to the following schedule:

Monday, Dec. 13 from 9:00 a.m. to 4 p.m.:

• English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
• ESOL Computer Basics
• Basic Math

Tuesday, Dec. 14at 9:00 a.m.:

• Computer Basics
• GED Preparation

Classes fill up fast, and sign-up is on a first-come, first-served basis, so contact the center soon to reserve your spot!

The center will offer the following classes:

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)

• Basic ESOL:  Mondays and Wednesdays – 9 to 10:30 a.m. OR 10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
• NEW Evening Class:  Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30 to 7 p.m. (begins Jan. 18)
• ESOL Level 2: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Basic Computer classes

• Computer Basics:  Mondays and Wednesdays from 9:30 to 11 a.m.ESOL Computer Basics: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3 to 4:30 p.m.
• ESOL Computer Basics 2: Mondays and Wednesdays from 3 to 4:30 p.m. (begins Jan. 18)

Basic Math – Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 to 10:30 a.m

GED Preparation – This class will prepare students to pass GED tests in math, reading, writing, social studies and science. Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.Career Building Assistance: Goodwill opens the computer lab to the general public for career-related activities during designated times. Goodwill Instructors will be available to help people conduct job searches on the Internet, write resumes and cover letters, and more. Mondays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

For people who speak English as a second language – Mondays through Thursdays from 1:30 to 3 p.m.

For class availability and enrollment information, please call (206) 957-1026.

Burien Goodwill is part of Seattle Goodwill Industries, a private, non-profit organization that has served the central and northern Puget Sound since 1923. Its free job training and education programs and services help low-income and underserved people obtain the skills they need to secure employment so they may achieve economic self-sufficiency. For more information about Goodwill programs, please call toll-free 1-877-GIVE4GOOD or visit the Web site at seattlegoodwill.org.

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training begins Sept. 16th and continues every Thursday evening from 6pm – 9pm at SeaTac City Hall, which is located at 4800 South 188th Street.

CERT was created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 1994. The goal is for emergency personnel to train neighborhood residents, community organization members and employees in basic emergency response skills. CERT members are then integrated into emergency response efforts for their area. Some sessions require physical participation while others are primarily lectures. Instructors emphasize that participants must be physically fit enough to engage in strenuous activities, such as lifting and carrying.

There is a $35 fee for the course and select supplies, and a thorough background check is conducted on applicants.

Various session highlights include:

• Sept. 16: Disaster Preparedness, with Instructor Mike Marrs, Chief of the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Dept.
• Oct. 7: Disaster Psychology & ICS, taught be Sgt. Henry McLauchlan of Burien Police, and Kathleen Gleaves of the Port of Seattle.
• Oct. 28: Terrorism & Review with Doug Reynolds of SeaTac Police.
• Oct. 30: Final Mass Casualty Exercise, which is the big finale with fake “victims” being treated in a mock disaster. Cool.

For more information, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or mechee.burnett@kingcounty.gov.

Here’s the full class lineup:

Toastmaster and Burien resident Steve Kennedy attended the District 2 Changeover Meeting last Saturday, where he was officially granted the status of Area 41 Governor as the Toastmaster fiscal year begins July 1, 2010. Our own B-Town Blog Sales Whiz, Theresa Frasch is his trusty assistant in charge of Marketing and Public Relations.

Toastmasters International (as the name implies) is an international organization with more than 12,500 clubs in 106 countries. In order to help keep things moving along the clubs are divided into Regions, Districts, Divisions and Areas. Steve and Theresa’s Area 41 has five clubs in Burien and Des Moines.

Area 41 consists of community clubs with members from a variety of different backgrounds and ages. Since many of the members are using Toastmasters as a tool to improve work performance (i. e. teaching, coaching, leading meetings, giving presentations, effective communicating, public speaking, and leadership skills, etc.), a common understanding helps them help each other improve these sought after work and life attributes.

Toastmasters Clubs offer a safe, secure environment to build confidence in the following areas: alleviate fear of public speaking, practice presentation skills, learn to better persuade and convince others. It also helps its members to think more quickly on their feet and it’s a good place to network with others with similar interests.

Most meetings are an hour to an hour and a half long. Some clubs meet every week. Some meet twice a month. Some meet in the morning, some at noon, some in the evening. A typical meeting consists of two to three speeches (5-7 minutes each) and the evaluations of the speeches (2-3 minutes each), as well as Table topics which is an impromptu speaking topic that provides members a chance to speak at random for 1-2 minutes each.

If you’d like to learn more about Area 41 Toastmasters and what it has to offer contact Theresa at 206-588-5088 or burienbreakfast@gmail.com. You can learn more about each club by visiting Area 41′s club websites:

• Burien Breakfast
• Jetsetters
• Leading Knights
• Soundwaves
• Sunuppers Advanced

You can stop by and talk to us at our booth at the Olde Burien Block Party on July 17 from 10am – 8pm.

Area 41′s motto is “41 Has More Fun!”

The Port of Seattle wants our Readers to know that there’s still time to register for their FREE “Citizens Academy,” a unique, free opportunity to learn up close about the many challenges facing local law enforcement.

Citizens Academy is a once-a-week, 10-week program that is open to the public.

It will be held at Sea-Tac Airport on Mondays, 9 a.m. – 11 a.m., from April 12 through June 28.

Police officers and civilian personnel who are experts in their fields will teach classes at the Citizens Academy. Each instructor has years of training and street experience, providing insights not ordinarily available to those outside the department.

Subjects include patrol, community policing, recruitment and training, domestic violence, narcotics, dispatch, investigations, crimes scene analysis, SWAT, explosive detection and narcotics detection K-9, and the bomb squad.

All classes are free of charge and open to the public. The class is limited to 25 participants, so get your application in early.

Want to participate? You’ll need:

• The ability to commit to attending a two-hour weekly class for ten weeks
• A background check

Port employees who wish to participate must have their manager’s permission.

Ready to Apply? Download, print and fill out the application (PDF file) here, then return it to:

FAX: (206) 787-5741

or Mail:

Port of Seattle Police
Attn: Citizens Academy
PO Box 68727
Seattle, WA 98168

For more information, please contact Detective Dan Breed, at breed.d@portseattle.org, or Officer Kyle Yoshimura at yoshimura.k@portseattle.org.

Together with the King County Sheriff’s Office, Burien and SeaTac Police are continuing their twice-yearly “Citizen’s Police Academy” program with an orientation on

Here are the details:

WHAT: Citizen’s Police Academy Training

WHEN: Starts Thursday, March 11th and continues through April 24th. Classes are held on Wednesday nights from 6pm to 9pm at the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Center in Burien.

Classes will run for 13 weeks, plus a graduation ceremony including a certificate of completion and pictures with police staff. A light meal will be provided for students. There are presentations by many of the Sheriff’s Office Units and several opportunities for hands-on experiences, plus a field trip to the King County Communications Center.

The training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall. The sessions require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

WHERE: Initial meeting is at the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Station, which is located at 15100 8th Ave SW in Burien; subsequent classes will be at the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Center in Burien.

COST: FREE!

INFO: From a press release:

Graduates of the Citizen’s Police Academy will have a better understanding of the law enforcement role in the criminal justice system and an appreciation for the many challenges facing law enforcement in today’s complex society. They will also be better able to assist offices in improving their neighborhoods and communities.

The goal is for emergency personnel to train members of neighborhoods, community organizations or workplaces in basic preparation and response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for their area.

SeaTac and Burien Fire and Police Departments partner in offering this eight-week training held on weekday evenings, with a Practical Fianl Exercise held on a Saturday. Sessions require approximately 20 ours to complete.  There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

Training is designed to cover the following:

• Disaster Preparedness
• Fire Safety
• Disaster Medical Operations (Triage, Treating Life Threatening Injuries, and Assessment, Treatment and Hygiene.)
• Light Search and Rescue
• Team Organization
• Disaster Psychology
• Terrorism

Graduates will also be eligible for the Ride-Along program, in which you can spend up to an entire shift riding with an officer.

This course is an unforgettable experience and it’s completely free for anyone who lives or works in the cities of SeaTac or Burien!

There are two sessions each year and they fill up fast, so register early with your local Community Service Officer.

If you are interested in attending the next session and would like an application sent to you by mail, please contact CSO Mechee Burnett at mechee.burnett@kingcounty.gov or 206.973.4917 (you can also download a PDF application here).

• SEATAC: If you are from the SeaTac area, please contact: CSO Eloise Kruger: 206-973-4915 or ekruger@ci.seatac.wa.us
• BURIEN: If you are from the Burien area, please contact: CSO Nicki Maraulja: 206-296-3333 or nicki.maraulja@kingcounty.gov