Homeland Security Centers of Excellence (HS-Centers) are sponsored by the

U.S. Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...

. These Centers develop technology and training for police and domestic military units. The Centers were created under the Homeland Security Act in 2002 in order to establish a coordinated, university-based system to increase domestic security measures.

Current Centers

The Center of Excellence network includes twelve Centers, ten of which are active, each with a unique security focus.

The Arctic Domain Awareness Center (ADAC)

The Arctic Domain Awareness Center (ADAC), led by the University of Alaska Anchorage, develops products and educational programs related to security in the Arctic maritime environment.

The Center for Visualization and Data Analytics (CVADA)

The Center for Visualization and Data Analytics (CVADA), co-led by

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mone ...

(visualization sciences-VACCINE) and Rutgers University (data sciences-CCICADA), researches data mining for security purposes.

The Center of Excellence for Awareness & Localization of Explosives-Related Threats (ALERT)

The Center of Excellence for Awareness & Localization of Explosives-Related Threats (ALERT), led by Northeastern University, pursues explosives-related research.

The Center of Excellence for Zoonotic and Animal Disease Defense (ZADD)

The Center of Excellence for Zoonotic and Animal Disease Defense (ZADD), co-led by Texas A&M University and Kansas State University, researches animal disease threats.

The Coastal Hazards Center of Excellence (CHC)

The Coastal Hazards Center of Excellence (CHC), co-led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and

Jackson State University Jackson State University (Jackson State or JSU) is a public historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is one of the largest HBCUs in the United States and the fourth largest university in Mississippi in terms of studen ...

, performs research and develops education programs to improve safeguards from catastrophic natural disasters.

The Maritime Security Center (MSC)

The Maritime Security Center (MSC), led by Stevens Institute of Technology, develops strategies to support

Marine Transportation Maritime transport (or ocean transport) and hydraulic effluvial transport, or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used thro ...

System resilience Robustness is the property of being strong and healthy in constitution. When it is transposed into a system, it refers to the ability of tolerating perturbations that might affect the system’s functional body. In the same line ''robustness'' ca ...

and educational programs for current and future security professionals.

The National Center for Border Security and Immigration (NCBSI)

The National Center for Border Security and Immigration (NCBSI), co-led by the University of Arizona in Tucson and the University of Texas at El Paso, develops products related to immigration, economics, and border security.

The National Center for Food Protection and Defense (NCFPD)

The National Center for Food Protection and Defense (NCFPD), led by the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

, researches the safety and security of the domestic food supply chain.

The National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE)

The National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE), led by the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

, researches the economic implications of terrorism and security countermeasures.

The National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE)

The National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE), led by the University of Nebraska at Omaha, develops knowledge and technology to counter and prevent terrorism and targeted violence.

Emeritus Centers

*The Center for Maritime, Island and Remote and Extreme Environment Security (MIREES), co-led by the University of Hawaii and the Stevens Institute of Technology, focuses on developing research and education programs for subarctic maritime security. *The National Center for the Study of Preparedness and Catastrophic Event Response (PACER), led by Johns Hopkins University, optimizes the Nation’s medical and public health preparedness, mitigation, and recovery strategies in the event of an extreme natural or man-made disaster. *The National Transportation Security Center of Excellence (NTSCOE), co-led by the University of Connecticut, Tougaloo College, and Texas Southern University, is a seven-institution consortium focused on developing products to increase the resilience of the Nation’s multi-modal transportation infrastructure. *The Center for Advancing Microbial Risk Assessment (CAMRA), co-led by Michigan State University and Drexel University and established jointly with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, researches threats from microbial hazards. * The National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), led by the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

, focuses on disrupting terrorist groups and improving the resilience of the general population in the event of terrorist attacks.

References

{{reflist Surveillance War on terror United States Department of Homeland Security