Citizen Corps Council

Citizen Corps is designed to be tailored to each community and managed at the local level by a Citizen Corps Council. The primary objectives of the Citizen Corps Council are to:
  • Match the needs of first responders with the skills and abilities of volunteers to make their families, their homes and their communities safer from the threats of terrorism, crime, and disasters;
  • Educate the public on safety, help citizens take an active role in protecting themselves from harm and teach citizens what to do in the event of a crisis;
  • Spearhead efforts to offer citizens new and existing volunteer opportunities, educational information and training courses to address crime, terrorism and natural disaster risks;
  • Promote Citizen Corps programs and activities across the community; and
  • Capture innovative practices and report accomplishments that can be replicated in other communities nationwide.

Our Citizen Corps Council and the programs they oversee will make our community a safer, better place to live. Specific benefits potentially include:
  • Supplementing our professional police, fire, emergency management, public health and public safety capabilities especially in times of emergency;
  • Giving the residents of our community a greater sense of security, responsibility and personal control;
  • Showcasing our community's efforts in crime prevention, public health and safety, emergency medical response, risk reduction and mitigation practices, emergency preparedness and emergency planning and response;
  • Bringing together the volunteer and the first responder communities to promote the concept that everyone has a role in making our community safer, stronger and better prepared;
  • Demonstrating our leadership and our personal commitment to the safety of our community;
  • Building community pride and patriotism; and
  • Preparing us all for the vital role of caring for ourselves and others in times of crisis.

Each community will determine who should be a member of their Council. Suggested membership of the Citizen Corps Council includes the following:
  • Leadership from elected officials, such as the mayor or city council members;
  • Leadership from emergency management; from the first responder community: law enforcement, fire and emergency medical services; and from health care providers;
  • Leadership from volunteer, community services and faith-based groups, including local representatives of Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD);
  • Leadership from any existing community substructures, such as neighborhood associations, civic groups or other entities that represent a large cross-section of the community;
  • Leadership from major industries, educational institutions and school boards, the business community and utility providers; and
  • Other representatives from specific segments of the community, such as the elderly, minority populations, and local media executives

The primary qualification to participating on the Council is making a commitment to educate the public on safety, to help citizens take an active role in protecting themselves from harm, to teach citizens what to do in the event of a crisis and to expand volunteer opportunities that will make the community safer.


For more information please Contact the Emergency Management
Programs Division at 505-891-5855

Link to National Citizen Corp Council Web site