Overview

In September of 2008, the Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response established Preparedness and Emergency Response Research Centers (PERRC) in seven accredited schools of public health. The PERRC will conduct research that will evaluate the structure, capabilities, and performance of public health systems for preparedness and emergency response activities.  In 2009, two new centers were added.

The intent of the research centers is to connect public health with scientists involved in business, engineering, legal, and social sciences fields to incorporate multiple perspectives into preparedness and response research, which can be used to strengthen our nation’s response capability. The establishment of the new research centers is mandated by the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act of 2006, which calls for research to improve federal, state, local, and tribal public health preparedness and response systems.

The nine schools receiving funding and their research priorities are:

• Emory University
• Harvard University
• Johns Hopkins University
• University of California, Berkeley
• University of California, Los Angeles
• University of Minnesota
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Washington

Download the PERRC Factsheet [pdf].