This page is registered with Civil Air Patrol, New York City Group, and is hosted by Malcolm Dickinson

Please note: Everything on this page is unofficial. It is a summary of my notes for a talk to tell my squadron about new aspects of CAP's Emergency Services training program.  The official source for information about the program is CAP National Headquarters.  Their web site was at http://www.capnhq.gov/nhq/do/dop/escp1.htm

- Malcolm Dickinson, Major, CAP

The ES Curriculum Project
In 1997, Civil Air Patrol embarked on a project called the Emergency Services Curriculum Project (ESCP).  The purpose of this project is to develop a standardized curriculum that can be used across the country. The project has made some major changes to the process of training our ES personnel and is still underway today.  An introduction to the project was at http://www.capnhq.gov/nhq/do/dop/escp1b.htm

The object: quality instruction, uniform training, uniform skills testing
The project seeks to address problems that had been noticed by members around the country.  These problems are not present in every unit, but they were noticed in many different places. They include: poor quality training; poor selection of instructors; training different ways in different units; and a lack of skill-based testing.

The ESCP team is made up of experienced ES personnel from various units around the country as well as ES program administrators from national headquarters.  They have developed a plan to address these issues by providing a standardized training curriculum for General ES as well as each of the ES specialty ratings.  Their project plan is at http://www.capnhq.gov/nhq/do/dop/escp3.htm

Train The Trainer
One of the first objectives to be addressed by the project team was a way to improve the overall quality of ES training being given in Civil Air Patrol.  They decided to address this by creating a course to educate trainers. This course, "Train The Trainer," is an 8-hour course that can only be taught by someone who's received instruction from National HQ personnel.

Starting in May 2001, all Emergency Services training must be given by (or supervised by) graduates of the Train The Trainer course.  So it will be useful to every squadron to have at least one person who has taken the course. 

I conducted a Train The Trainer course in November 2001 in New York.  24 members came from NY, CT, and NH wings to receive the training.  They are now qualified to do local ES training. 

Thanks to the late Maj John Paeper for making the course possible, the Centereach Fire Department for letting us use their facility, and J.C. Follender for these pictures!  Thanks also to Bill Hughes who provided the presentation on the new regulations.

Participants work in groups at times during the course.
Each group made a short presentation introducing its members and
speaking about the experience they bring to CAP and to the course.

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