The Walla Walla University Center for Humanitarian Engagement (CHE) is working to build a culture of disaster preparedness within the Walla Walla Valley. This March, they partnered with Adventist Community Services to host a three-day Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training course, and they have plans to further establish the CERT program next year.

The CHE has been hosting this annual weekend training course every spring quarter since 2023. However, they will be hosting more frequent training events starting this fall so interested students and community members can begin their training earlier in the year.

This CERT program is sponsored by Washington state and has sister programs in all 49 other states—there are more than 3,200 local CERT programs nationwide. All training events are free and open to anyone age 13 or older. Completing the training not only offers a personal gain of knowledge but it also prepares participants to be a part of a CERT team, capable of assisting professional responders during disaster situations. This spring, CERT training participation was largely composed of community members, but they were joined by two WWU students; the CHE hopes to increase student participation as the program develops.

The Washington state CERT program coordinator, Celso Rangel, is a retired U.S. Army veteran with decades of experience in emergency response. He is a multilingual expert—speaking over 10 different languages—who serves on the National CERT Association board, advocating for diverse and multilingual communities in emergency preparedness.

During the weekend training course, Rangel covered a wide range of topics such as disaster preparedness, light search and rescue, first aid and medical operations, disaster psychology, and team building.

To learn more about the CHE, visit wallawalla.edu/che.

Posted May 12, 2025.