September 21, 2009
More
than 35 institutions of higher education from New York and
neighboring states participated in the H1N1 Preparedness for
Colleges and Universities Conference on September 18 hosted at St.
John’s University’s Manhattan campus.
Photo Gallery
The half-day conference held in the Saval Auditorium highlighted
by the opening address of Joseph F. Bruno, New York City
Commissioner of the Office of Emergency Management.
“What we’re working on is the development of one message – a
joint information center – that will educate the public and private
sector regarding the H1N1 virus,” said Commissioner Bruno.
“Colleges and Universities are an important part of the
relationship.”
Presentations
Dr. Scott A. Harper, Medical Specialist, Bureau of Communicable
Disease for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Dr.
Isaac B. Weisfuse, Deputy Commissioner, Division of Disease Control
for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, also gave
informative presentations complete with vital statistics, graphs
and detailed data to the more than 125 attendees gathered at St.
John’s Saval Auditorium.
“Our
hope is that the exchange of ideas and best practices can be
utilized by the participating colleges and universities in their
emergency plans,” said Gerard A. McEnerney, Assistant Vice
President and Executive Director – Staten Island Campus &
University Emergency Management. “Plus, the information presented
by these experts provides an educational backdrop for the fight
against the H1N1 virus all across America.”
Other expert presenters on the dais at the conference included
Lucia V. Torian, Ph.D., Deputy Director, HIV Epidemiology &
Field Service Program, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene,
Ira Tannenbaum, Manager, Public/Private Initiatives, NYC Office of
Emergency Management, Amber Greene, Manager, Ready New York
Program, NYC Office of Emergency Management, Kathryn Hutchinson,
Ph.D., Executive Director, Student Wellness, St. John’s University
and Dominic Petruzzelli, Director of Residence Life, St. John’s
University.
The H1N1 Preparedness for Colleges and Universities Conference
comes on the heels of St. John’s first two Emergency Seminars, the
Urban Hazards Forum IV: Campus School Safety and Emergency
Preparedness held in 2008, and the Study Abroad and Emergency
Preparedness Conference held in March 2009.
For more information and copies of all presentations visit the
conference web site at www.stjohns.edu/campus/publicsafety/h1n1.stj.
Interested media representatives are asked to contact Dominic
Scianna, Assistant Vice President for Media Relations at (718)
990-6185 or e-mail inquiries to sciannad@stjohns.edu.