Join Us / Volunteer
Join Osceola County Emergency Management
Emergency Management staff consists of 2 paid positions that are supported by volunteer Emergency Management Support Team (E.M.S.T.) members. These extraordinary individuals commit themselves to perform a very unique role in public safety, to ensure readiness for extraordinary emergencies that cannot be managed by through 'normal' systems. Join our team to be a part of this effort!
EMPLOYMENT - EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT STAFF
Osceola County Emergency Management paid staff consists of 1 Full Time Director and 1 Part Time Coordinator. Currently both positions are filled with no future vacancies anticipated.
Temporary grant funded positions will be posted as they become available, however all emergency management positions require significant training, experience, and credentialling. It is highly recommended that persons interested in applying for future OCEM paid positions participate in our E.M.S.T. or internship programs for free education, on the job experience, and to be considered as an internal candidate.
EMST is currently seeking volunteers for all positions.
VOLUNTEER - EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SUPPORT TEAM (E.M.S.T.)
The Emergency Management Support Team (E.M.S.T.) consists of volunteer staff who contribute their time & skills to augment emergency management manpower for emergencies, disaster exercises, projects, and daily activities. As OCEMD has only 2 paid staff, EMST plays a crucial role in our community's (and region's) emergency management system.
EMST membership is a great opportunity a wide variety of persons interested in a professional opportunity in emergency services, from those with existing professional qualifications as well as young adults looking for their first on the job experience.
EMST is recruiting for new membership now! Click to learn more!
Emergency Management Support Team (Volunteer Position)
Best for: Local citizens interested in a steady, long term volunteer committment to emergency management
Qualifications: Min 18 years of age, High school or equivalent education, high interest in emergency management & ability to contribute regular volunteer hours to activities. Ability to learn quickly and study independently.
Activities involved: EMST supports EM operations by helping with emergency planning, responding to local & regional disasters, assisting in technical projects, maintenance & operations of the Emergency Operations Center & other technical equipment, helping during disaster exercises & training, & other operations.
Benefits: EMST recieves technical training/education in emergency operations and are credentialled as staff. As such, E.M.S.T. members are considered internal candidates for paid position openings - in fact, most of our paid staff are recruited from the E.M.S.T. program!
How to apply: Interested applicants should contact Emergency Management via phone, email, or facebook - please indicate interest in the EMST program.
Volunteer Internship Programs
Osceola County Emergency Management is proud to host a highly successful professional internship program that has contributed many new professionals to the field over its 20 year span. Due to our extraordinarily wide range of services and scope, we are able to provide skill building programs to virtually all levels of interest, experience, and time commitment. Our approach ensures that in exchange for their volunteer time, interns receive high quality training and experience that translates to their professional qualifications as they seek permanent employment. Our full time position placement rate is 96% for those completing phase 4!
OCEMD currently has both FULL INTERNSHIP positions open.
FULL INTERNSHIPS (A Comprehensive Professional EM Program)
Our full internship is a comprehensive program designed for individuals who desire to become a career emergency management professional and provides a full scope of professional education, training, and real world experience. This program is an ideal option for any person with the drive, ability to learn, and commitment to develop a new career path in return for their investment of volunteer time.
Both Full Internship positions are vacant and open for application! Click this box for more information.
Emergency Management Full Internship (Volunteer/Unpaid Position)
Best for: Career minded individuals that are interested in pursuing a professional career in public and/or private sector emergency management and able to invest regular volunteer time (similar to studying at a technical school) in exchange for professional education, training, and experience.
Qualifications: Min 18 years of age, High school or equivalent education, high interest in emergency management & ability to contribute regular weekly volunteer hours (similar to that of participating at a technical school) to education, training, and operations. Ability to learn quickly and study independently is essential - abilities in standard microsoft computer programs and interpersonal communications also are vital.
Activities involved: Full internships provide education, training, and experience in a comprehensive range of emergency management services (see our About Us page) including participating with our C.E.R.T., I.M.T., and E.M.S.T. programs (see descriptions). Interns will directly be involved in the 12 essential emergency management services over 4 phases:
Phase 1 (EM Candidate): Interest/Match/Entry - focuses on the candidate ensuring that emergency management is right for them by establishing their initial involvement, establishing a solid understanding of emergency management concepts, and developing their skills by helping staff with daily activities. The candidate will start with involvement with our C.E.R.T. program which will provide field training, experience, and involvement with our public safety agencies. By end of this phase, the candidate has gained significant education, experience, and references for their resume' but also gained enough knowledge to determine if emergency management is a desired career path.
Phase 2 (EM Trainee): Education - is characterized by intense emergency management education and active hands on practical skill building. The core of this program consists of the participant completing nearly 50 independent study lessons each of which are reinforced by on the job study skill building activities. For example, the candidate will complete an independent study course on basic emergency planning followed by actively reviewing and/or updating a section of the county emergency plan. Upon completion of this phase, the candidate will have a comprehensive foundation of emergency management knowledge and will be ready to contribute in a full spectrum of activities.
Phase 3 (EM Specialist): Experience - involves the candidate continuing their training/education by working and contributing to emergency management efforts in a supportive but independent manner. Essentially at this point they are working on their own projects and developing into an independent emergency management professional. Along the way they establish professional relationships with local, state, and federal officials and formal baseline certifications. Upon completion of this phase, the candidate is a new, but established emergency management professional and is eligible to be '1st up' for internal part-time employment by Osceola EMD (as available) or continue their internship.
Phase 4 (EM Officer): Final Placement - at this point, the intern is operating independently and developing their own projects using their knowledge, skill, and ingenuity. They continue to aggressively progress their professional education, experience, and service via Osceola EMD while actively seeking permanent employment. As hard as it is on our EM family, OCEMD actively supports the intern in exploring, evaluating, and eventually securing their next career opportunity that is most appropriate for them.
Benefits: Full interns recieve training, education, and experience in emergency management and are officially credentialled as staff. In addition to full interns being considered 'internal' staff for all temporary and permanent positions, we provide the intern full support in ultimately being placed permanently in the next step of their career.
How to apply: Interested applicants should contact Emergency Management via phone, email, or facebook - please indicate interest in the internship program.
OCEMD is currently entertaining LIMITED internship positions.
LIMITED INTERNSHIP (A Temporary Career Building Opportunity)
Limited internships are short term (temporary) / skill specific career building opportunities for those that simply want to to gain professional experience in a real world EM setting. Due to their custom nature, each of these are matched, designed, and executed independently to the intern and OCEMD's needs. These are great for college students needing credits, new emergency managers needing job shadowing, or young adults for basic job experience.
Limited Internship positions are available! Click this box for more information.
Emergency Management Limited Internship (Volunteer/Unpaid Position)
Best for: Responsible individuals that are interested in developing their existing skills by applying them in a real world on the job experience benefitting their community. Past actual examples include college interns needing intern credit, young adults seeking their first opportunity in a professional environment, new emergency managers wanting to job shadow program management.
Qualifications: Min 18 years of age, High school or equivalent education, high interest in emergency management & ability to contribute a particular skill and regular volunteer hours (similar to that of a part time employee) to program operations. Ability to learn quickly and study independently is essential - abilities in standard microsoft computer programs and interpersonal communications also are vital.
Activities involved: Limited internships are carefully matched to meet the need's of the intern in developing existing skills for professional development (resume' & reference building) AND the need's of OCEM in project delivery. As such each is customized and different, however, a basic process is the same:
Phase 1 (EM Candidate): Interest/Match/Entry - focuses on matching the candidate's skills, interest, and availability to an emergency management program need. This involves the candidate studying our program framework, determining what skills/areas they would like to contribute, and developing a proposed project for the internship.
Phase 2 (EM Trainee): Education - the intern studies various educational & reference materials on the area of emergency service in which their particular project lies. Upon completion, the intern will revise their proposal with action steps for completion.
Phase 3 (EM Project Specialist): Project Development - the intern begins implementing the steps of their project proposal under guidance of EM staff. Proposals involve coordination with actual officials and are aimed at investments in one of our service areas.
Phase 4 (EM Project Specialist): Completion - upon completing their project, the intern is provided feedback and supported in adjusting their resume' and professional goals. If interested, interns are allowed to continue their service with EMST as 'project specialists' for further experience.
Past examples of successful limited internships have included:
Public Administration interns assigned to managing Homeland Security Grant administration
Criminal Justice interns developing law enforcement plans/procedures or school safety plans
Marketing/Education interns developing public information and/or preparedness campaigns
Newly appointed emergency managers building their skills in service of an established mentored program.
Benefits: As Limited Interns recieve minimal EM training, they are not considered for 'internal' or ongoing staff positions - however, full support is provided in resume' building and job seeking.
How to apply: Interested applicants should contact Emergency Management via phone, email, or facebook - please indicate interest in the internship program.
Other Volunteer Opportunities
Osceola County Emergency Management is proud to host a highly successful professional internship program that has contributed many new professionals to the field over its 20 year span. Due to our extraordinarily wide range of services and scope, we are able to provide skill building programs to virtually all levels of interest, experience, and time commitment. Our approach ensures that in exchange for their volunteer time, interns receive high quality training and experience that translates to their professional qualifications as they seek permanent employment.
COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM (C.E.R.T.)
The Community Emergency Response Team (C.E.R.T.) harnesses the power of citizen volunteers to assist emergency services (police, fire, ems, emergency management, 911) in lite duty assignments. C.E.R.T. members are specially trained, equipped, and experienced to act as a force multiplier for public safety in their mission to help in community safety when needed. These usually consists of assisting in traffic control, missing person searches, help at special events (parades), community safety programs, disaster damage assessment, and other assignments.
Learn more by visiting our C.E.R.T. page! This page details more of what C.E.R.T. does and includes a quick presentation of the various steps of joining the team.
Osceola's I.M.T. is accepting applicants. Contact Us for information.
INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM (I.M.T.)
The Incident Management Team (I.M.T.) is a specialty team of first responders that provide technical support to critical incidents such as hazardous materials, severe storms, active shooter, and special events. When called, members assist public safety agencies in incident management, planning, logistics, safety, public information, communications, and other needed tasks. The IMT also plays a critical role in planning, training, exercising, and equipment for these critical situations to Osceola and neighboring counties.
How to join: Applicants must be members of an Osceola County public safety agency, such as fire, police, ems, 911, or other agency. They also must be certified and skilled in N.I.M.S. ICS, have excellent interpersonal skills, and possess a natural talent for coordinating chaotic situations. Interested applicants should contact Emergency Management, their department chief, or another IMT member for instructions OR attend one of our quarterly incident management training/meeting sessions.
MICHIGAN VOLUNTEER REGISTRY
The Michigan Volunteer Registry is part of a national network of State based systems designed for the advanced registration and credential verification of volunteers needed during large scale disasters. Originally designed primarily for health professionals, the MVR has expanded to include any type of individual willing to volunteer in a public health or medical event. Volunteers may choose to register for one or more of twelve main organizations within the MVR. These organizations include: Community Emergency Response Team (CERT); Fire Corps; County Affiliated Volunteers; Medical Reserve Corps (MRC); Michigan Mortuary Response Team (MI-MORT); Michigan Transportable Emergency Surge Assistance (MI-TESA); Neighborhood Watch; Tribal Response Teams; or Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS).
Learn more about the Michigan Volunteer Registry via their website here.
OSCEOLA COUNTY
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
P.O. Box 25
22054 Professional Drive,
Reed City MI 49677