SENIOR PROJECT OVERVIEW

DIRECTIONS: Explain each area in 35 to 50 words.

Name: Haley Gammage

Title of Project: Federal Catastrophe

Title of Research Paper: Federal Catastrophe: The Faults of the Federal Emergency Management Agency

Synopsis of Research Paper:

The long history of the faults of the Federal Emergency Management Agency are ongoing and lengthy.
Their lack of response, the outdated Stafford act, difficult documentation, lack of funding, and Americans
high expectations are all factors to why FEMA is not working at its full potential. Looking locally and
becoming educated on disaster relief as a community are ways that American citizens can help make
FEMA a more efficient agency.

Project Description:

I made an Instagram page, @fc_erc, that informs followers about natural disasters and pandemics. I have
currently made 12 post with information about preparing for floods, earthquakes, and wildfires while also
participating in the Hurricane preparedness week from May 3 rd-9th. I also posted Instagram stories about
COVID-19 and asked if my followers had any questions.

Relationship between Project and Paper:

One of my solutions for the improvement of FEMA was to look locally and within your community to be
able to relieve the pressure on them. This Instagram page reached people in my community and informed
them about how to prepare for disasters and what to think about even before one hits. This awareness on
disasters will in turn help to relieve some of the pressure on FEMA.

My background experience in the area:

I found this topic when I was in my Ethics and Law class in 11 th grade. Since then, I have learned so
much about FEMA and what goes into Emergency Management. This past summer I was so lucky to be
able to intern with the Virginia Beach Office of Emergency Management. I got an inside look to what
emergency managers do and how they keep localities safe. I learned so much from this experience and it
helped me be able to understand my project as a whole.

Special things I’d like judges to consider and look for:

I really fell in love with this topic and strove to get the information out there that no one was talking
about. I could talk endlessly about FEMA and all the information I have learned over the last 2 years. I
hope you find this interesting and take away knowledge that you did not have before about FEMA.