Interagency and First Responders Programs Division

Mission

The Interagency and First Responders Programs Division Director is responsible to the Under Secretary for establishing policies and programs to support the mission given to the Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Technology in Section 302 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002.

Objectives

The Interagency and First Responders Programs Division assists our federal, state, local, territorial customers, including the first responder communities in numerous risk areas. The division establishes and maintains cooperative, visible, and value-added presence across the country with the Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate customer agencies, federal officials, state, local, tribal, territorial, first responder, private, and other critical local/regional homeland security and homeland defense. This provides an essential communication vehicle and liaison between our customers and S&T and is also intended to leverage the S&T-related work going on in the Interagency and other federal, national guard, state, local, tribal, first responder and critical homeland security and homeland defense entities. This work directly supports and augments the work of the directorate in delivering technological capabilities and knowledge products to our customers, the Department operating components, state and local agencies, or Department of Homeland Security components supporting state and local agencies.

The division also coordinates the activities of the First Responder Integrated Product Team (IPT). This IPT was established to address the highest priority research, development, testing and evaluation (RDT&E) needs of our nation’s first responders. 

Leadership

Mr. Randel Zeller is the Director for the Interagency and First Responder Programs Division within the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate.

Organization

The Interagency and First Responder Programs Division consists of a staff of geographically dispersed senior analysts who are responsible for coordinating joint science and technology programs of national scope and impact. The division's primary customers, or end-users, are other operating components within the Department of Homeland Security and other federal, National Guard, state, local, tribal, first responder and critical homeland security and homeland defense entities.