Degrees of Security

A strange mist settles over the crowd at a basketball game. The skin and eyes of

ALSO SEE: 10 New Courses That Take On Terrorism

the 4,000 fans begin to burn. People start having seizures. By the time police officers arrive, some have fled the arena, but most are still inside.

What should the officers do?

"I'd seal off the arena," one student says.

"You're not going to help the people inside?" another counters.

"Not until I know what that mist is," the first student says.

Others jump in, arguing the merits and drawbacks of different approaches. The gas attack is fictional, but students in "Terrorism II: Homeland Defense" at Curry College take it seriously. Most are police officers or undergraduates who hope to join the fight against terrorism, but some psychology and history majors have signed up too. The class is part of Curry's new seven-course certificate program in homeland defense, one of the first programs of its kind in the nation.

But it is hardly the only such program. In fact, a growing number of colleges are trying to gain a foothold in homeland-defense education. A majority of the programs, like the one at Curry, near Boston, are aimed at "first responders" -- police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel. A handful of others are designed for higher-ups in the counterterrorism industry. It's all part of a rush to be among the first to offer courses in a new field that promises to bring in lots of students, not to mention their tuition dollars.

Leading the charge are community and small four-year colleges, along with online, for-profit institutions. So far, larger universities have concentrated their efforts on snagging federal money for counterterrorism research, rather than starting degree programs. Their new courses have focused on policy and history, not field training.

There are a few exceptions. Purdue University has announced plans to create an institute and offer courses in homeland security. But while Purdue is still planning, Curry's eight-month-old program offers nine courses and has already drawn 22 students.

Colleges have touted the programs as leading to good jobs protecting the United States from terrorists. But not everyone is convinced. "My guess is that a lot of this is just a marketing tool," says Steven P. Lab, a professor of criminal justice at Bowling Green State University and president of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences.

Those in charge of the programs, however, counter that they are still works in progress and that it's too early to make such judgments. "I think we have a sense of where we are going," says Peter Hainer, a professor of anthropology and chairman of Curry's department of sociology and criminal justice. "But there are still going to be some things we'll trip over along the way."

Swift Reaction

Two days after the September 11 attacks, a group of professors at Curry, a 1,400-student four-year college where many undergraduates major in criminal justice, met to discuss starting a program that would focus on terrorism. Among them was Paul McDonald, a criminal-justice instructor who had floated the idea of offering terrorism courses six months earlier. Attacks like the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole, in 2000, had convinced the professor that terrorism was becoming a serious threat to national security and therefore an important topic for Curry to explore. Now, his colleagues agreed.

Over the next year, they hashed out the details. What courses should they offer? Who should teach them? Would the program be for undergraduates or graduates? And, not insignificantly, what should they call the program?

They decided against putting "terrorism" in the title. Officials were afraid that it might sound as if Curry were opening an Al Qaeda training camp. Eventually, they chose "homeland defense," though they still worry it sounds faddish. "We couldn't come up with anything better," says Mr. Hainer. They also hired Kathleen M. Stefani, an officer in the Massachusetts state police who has been in charge of security for large events in Boston.

The program is open to all students. Some courses cover practical concerns -- like the discussion of the mist in the basketball arena -- while others, like "Faith and Fanaticism," examine the roots of terrorism.

Classes began in the fall, and so far students seem pleased. Liberal-arts majors have signed up out of pure interest. Isaac Palmer, a freshman psychology major who plans to become a junior-high-school counselor, says he is taking "Terrorism I" so he can "figure out why terrorists are trying to get us."

Other students have more-practical considerations. "The courses have provided some insight into what we should be doing," says Stephen Corcoran, director of security at baseball's Fenway Park, who enrolled at Curry because of the program.

Matthew Nowak, a sophomore majoring in criminal justice, signed up because "I feel strongly for our country." He also thinks the program "will help me get my foot in the door for a better job opportunity."

Career Advancement

Better jobs are why students are signing up for a new associate-degree program in homeland security at Fairmont State Community and Technical College, in West Virginia. The program, scheduled to begin this fall, will allow students to specialize in aviation, criminal justice, safety, or emergency medical services. "It will help our country, our state, and our students," says Rich McCormick, the college's assistant provost. "This program is a real winner for everyone involved."

That kind of enthusiasm is shared by other community colleges. Indeed, two-year institutions across the country now offer courses in counterterrorism, and a few, like the Lamar Institute of Technology, are planning full-fledged programs.

In April, the Texas college will begin offering a 12-course certificate program in homeland defense. But while students will receive their certificates from Lamar, the courses will actually be taught online by instructors at the American Institute of Homeland Defense, which has provided counterterrorism training for thousands of police and military officers in Texas. The for-profit institute, founded two months after September 11, has already reached similar partnership agreements with six other colleges.

"It's really spreading by word of mouth," says Ken Holshouser, president of the institute and a former Army intelligence officer. Eventually, Mr. Holshouser says, the institute will offer bachelor's and master's degrees in homeland defense.

For-profit colleges are also getting into the act. In December, Corinthian Colleges Inc. began offering a degree program in homeland security on two of its Colorado campuses. Students take courses like "Domestic & International Terrorism" and "Emergency Planning & Security Measures." The college's Web site invites visitors to "TRAIN NOW TO BECOME A HOMELAND SECURITY SPECIALIST!"

There is no shortage of demand, according to Corinthian officials. "Every day, campuses ask if they can add this to their offerings," says Daniel Byram, who oversees the company's criminal-justice curriculum.

While Corinthian developed its new program quickly, it was still beaten to the punch by Kaplan Colleges Online, which began offering a certificate in "Terrorism and National Security Management" in April 2002. Under the heading "What Are the Career Opportunities?" on its Web site, Kaplan lists the FBI and the Justice Department.

"This will make [graduates] more eligible for promotions and give them a better understanding of terrorism and where it comes from," says Daniel McBride, who helped develop the curriculum and teaches some of the courses. He expects the program to grow considerably in coming years and to become "more academically rigorous."

Educating the Managers

Other colleges are also offering or planning to offer programs for those who manage counterterrorism operations. In January, the Naval Postgraduate School began a master's program in homeland security for just such students. Fourteen are enrolled in the program, which is taught mainly online.

Also in January, the University of New Haven and Sandia National Laboratories kicked off their own graduate degree in national security. Courses offered include "Securing National Security Information Systems" and "Introduction to Practical Issues in Cryptography."

The rash of new programs doesn't surprise David Goldfischer, an associate professor of international studies at the University of Denver. What does surprise him is that more institutions are not following suit. "I've been amazed that there isn't more academic entrepreneurship," says Mr. Goldfischer.

His university isn't getting left behind. In the fall, Denver will begin offering courses in a graduate-level certificate program in homeland defense that will train public officials to prevent and respond to terrorism.

Officially, the university is not advertising the new degree yet, but the admissions office has been inundated with telephone calls since January, when word leaked out to a local newspaper. "Local, state, and federal governments will be struggling to figure out how to allocate money and how to come up with a manageable defense program," says Mr. Goldfischer. "I thought it would be nice for us to make a contribution."

In most cases, what exactly that contribution will be is unclear. "A lot of this is people taking stuff we've all studied for a long time, wrapping the flag around it, and calling it homeland security," says Bowling Green's Mr. Lab. He adds that his university has no plans to "jump on the bandwagon."

Less dismissive than Mr. Lab but still skeptical is Robert J. Louden, director of the criminal-justice center at the City University of New York's John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "The biggest thing is, Who is offering it and what are they offering?" he says. "And, in the long run, what are students getting from it?"

That said, Mr. Louden's college has also added a few courses in counterterrorism and recently opened a Center on Terrorism and Public Safety, which holds monthly seminars.

When Curry announced its program, in June, the news release carried the hopeful headline "Curry College Aids Defense of Homeland." While that's certainly the goal, even professors at the college say they don't know what to expect. "We're not sure yet what students are going to do with this," says Mr. McDonald, referring to the certificate. "But it won't hurt them to have it."

• "Theology of Terror: Osama bin Laden and the Taliban"
  Arizona State University, main campus
  Mark Woodward, associate professor of religious studies
  Explores how religion can contribute to terrorism
  
  
• "Violence and Terror in Modernity"
  College of Wooster
  Thomas Tierney, visiting associate professor of philosophy and political science
  Examines terrorism from historical and theoretical perspectives
  
  
• "Law and Terrorism: War, Crime, and Liberty"
  Emory University
  Charles A. Shanor, professor of law
  Covers counterterrorism's effect on privacy and immigration, among other topics
  
  
• "Sport, Terrorism, and Violence"
  Indiana University at Bloomington
  Lynn M. Jamieson, associate professor of recreation and park administration
  Explores the "roots of terrorism and violence from the context of sport"
  
  
• "Terrorism: Origin, Dangers, and Prospects"
  Kenyon College
  David M. Rowe, visiting associate professor of political science
  Looks at how to control terrorism through "non-violent humanitarian responses, the use of international law, and military action"
  
  
• "Terror, Television, and the Hijacking of the American Political Agenda"
  Pomona College
  Leo J. Flynn, professor of government and politics
  Focuses on the role of the news media in a time of crisis
  
  
• "Jihad and the End of the World"
  Rice University
  David Cook, assistant professor of religious studies
  Studies the "connection between militant jihad and apocalyptic literature"
  
  
• "Why Do 'They' Hate Us?"
  St. Lawrence University
  John Collins, assistant professor of global studies, and Kenneth Church, assistant professor of history
  Examines the history of American involvement in the Middle East
  
  
• "America in the World: How Did the U.S. Come to 9/11?"
  Temple University
  Craig Eisendrath, instructor in American studies
  Covers American foreign policy in light of the terrorist attacks
  
  
• "Rethinking National Security"
  University of California at Los Angeles
  Albert Carnesale, chancellor and professor of policy studies, mechanical engineering, and aerospace engineering
  Looks at the "near-term threats to the security of the United States"