University of California, Davis
April 20-24, 2009
WAS THE AGENDA FOR THIS COURSE ADEQUATE AND DID IT MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS?
 | Yes, as always! |
| Very ambitious agenda—fewer, more detailed presentations would have been of greater benefit to me as a new manager. |
| No, it needed more on actual compliance/enforcement issues. There needed to be more facilitation to keep the talk from US Attorney from going off track. It was rude to the others who wanted to hear what he had to say—it was one of the only relevant topics and it wasn’t finished. |
| Yes, learned lots. First time—don’t really know what to expect, containment helped inspection forms were very interesting. |
| I feel that the first two days could have been more interesting, we spent more time covering a wide variety of topics on the second to last and last day then all others combined. |
| Very good agenda. Great presenters and valuable information. |
| Yes, a little much at times but very adequate. |
| Containment was too long and too many “quiet” moments. 5 days is too long = Friday should be travel day home. |
| The agenda was adequate, however the course did not meet my expectations (please note—I had very high expectations). |
| The agenda was good as we were exposed to EPA’s compliance and enforcement methods. We also heard what other states were doing in compliance and enforcement. It would appear that most compliance and enforcement actions are done through stat/tribal/region laws, rules, and regulations—which these three entities will continue to do. We’ll continue to see the EPA as a partner/leader/foundation on which state/tribal/regions build their own laws, rules, regulations. Hence, dialogue/interaction among all entities must always be on-going. |
| Yes, it was excellent. The planning committees did a great job. |
| I am new to the enforcement world, so most of the agenda was completely new to me. I learned a lot from the speakers and from the other participants. Overall, it was a worthwhile experience and I’m glad that I came. |
| In overall, yes. Better if the mosquito theme would be on the same day. |
| More than met expectations. |
| Many of the topics are management driven topics. Good information and updates. |
| I am not sure I gained much knowledge from the container-containment portion of the agenda. |
| Most if not all were adequate and pertained to what we do on a daily basis. |
| Great: Thank you. Wonderful experience, look forward to more. |
| Followed agenda and itinerary to the letter which was wonderful. Knew exactly what to expect and what the upcoming topics were. |
| It was adequate. Good information exchange. |
| Excellent topics on enforcement and discussions on general deterrence effect as a cause of; container/containment covered very well with useful take. More documentation and knowledge base to provide enforcement and compliance. |
| Absolutely! There was so much current information as opposed to many workshops that have outdated information. Nice balance between Ag & Structural information. |
| The agenda went beyond my expectations! Very well done! |
| I did not see an agenda until Monday morning so I came with a very open mind. |
WHAT COULD THE PREP PLANNERS HAVE DONE TO MAKE THIS COURSE MORE USEFUL TO YOU?
| As new as I am to everything that is presented, it was all useful to me. |
| Stick to topic directly correlated to compliance/enforcement. Improving compliance/enforcement; technology; court strategies; personal issues—improving case evidence preparation. |
| A wider look at compliance issues. Information was 90% container/containment and drift. There are many other compliance issues in State/Fed regulations. |
| Add more breaks, it is helpful to have more time up moving around, it keeps you awake and interested. Sitting 1˝-2 hrs with no break is a very bad idea. |
| None that I can think of at this time. |
| Facilitator was necessary for a few presentations. Work groups would have been better in a few areas. |
| Cut down on days held. Train the EPA people on how to give a good presentation and group facilitation methods. |
| Have more variety in presenters. Too many topics seemed more like filler material. A pre-planned Monday night activity to allow people to get to know each other. |
| Compile a list/partial list of some difficult/ambiguous label language and give EPA’s understanding/rendering on such language statements. The list could be compiled for label issues submitted to EPA/OPP over the years. Actually, this will/can be accomplished in part by the “SLITS” program. |
| Give the state presentations more time. |
| Overall, the agenda was great. If I could change one thing, I would have all the participant talks in the morning when all are fresh. |
| Make it 3-4 days - too long of a course. |
| I don’t know if this is possible, but I think the material could have been covered in four days. I really have a problem with giving up two weekends. |
| Great job! |
| One whole day of enforcement compliance issues, i.e. FIFRA overview. Possible New topics: Civil vs. Criminal and “When to Refer” session (criminal) How to Prosecute Criminal EPA Case (from state perspective; start to finish”), Deterrence. |
| Nothing! An excellent course. |
| A presenter on the role of regional oversight of state enforcement. |
| More discussions on compliance, deterrence effect. |
| Maybe have a few more EPA Regional folks (Reg 1, 2, or 3) so they could hear what we need for support and also to better coordinate throughout the whole country. |
| Nothing. |
| I wonder if we need to have five full days. There are pros and cons. People come from long distances and you want to take every opportunity but five full days might be too long. How about another field trip on another day. |
IF THIS COURSE WAS TO BE HELD AGAIN IN THE FUTURE, CAN YOU SUGGEST FACULTY WHO COULD SUBSTANTIALLY IMPROVE THE AGENDA?
| Presentations on enforcement matrix; maybe different samples. |
| Move the breakout sessions closer to the front end of the agenda, consider shortening the course, consider moving the banquet up a day or making it an opening banquet as opposed to a graduation banquet. |
| More comfortable seating and temperature control. |
| Great job in planning. You seem to have covered the most current topics. |
| Dr. Michael Hare, Toxicologist with TDA. Has a good practical take on Human Exposure and what information a toxicologist needs to make an assessment. |
| Use local science and research based presenters. Why did we have someone from Florida fly all the way out to talk about mosquitoes when there was clearly a local authority with great knowledge and presentation skills. |
| How about feedback from the leadership in the regulated community—like the National Pest Control Association. We are on one side of the fence of compliance/enforcement. The regulars/community is on the other side of the fence. How do they perceive us? Do they have anything constructive to contribute to us as we establish new laws or amend existing laws? |
| Senior inspectors—good to have a few to state inspector side of the issues. |
| How’s about Washington DC in the EPA’s headquarters. |
| Could only have either tour or speaker on mosquito control. Those two items were very similar and redundant. Increase number of breaks, especially in am portions. |
| More varied HQ speakers and HQ speakers at a high management level who can hear what the states are saying. I know the travel budget is tight, but contact with the states is so informative and will help the HQ guys do their job better. |
| Faculty who deliver some theory, followed by discussions on implementing into practice. |
| More from CID, enforcement staff. |
| I think a session on working with your agency attorney would be helpful. In my state we don’t blink without the attorney’s approval and the attorney is actually directing policy. |
ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS?
| The time one has to devote to this course is far too long—two weekends is a lot of time to take away from a personal and professional life. Consequently, there are only three days, collectively, that apply to the course topics of all the PREPs I have attended. Most of it seems to be “Scene fillers”! Shorten course and keep it relevant and keep interest and attention up. While everyone should try to make a commitment to make the most of it and attend every day, it needs to be understood that things do come up that people have to deal with immediately as a professional (or personally perhaps). The graduation dinner is not worth-while, but if it is necessary then have it on a different night so people are free to go home early. |
| 1) Try not to have so much on one topic in one day. I know it was unavoidable. 2) I was apprehensive before I came but would be glad to go to another one. |
| Great networking and contacts. Sticky tabs and highlights would be nice. Time spent organizing these events is greatly appreciated! Food and accommodations—absolutely excellent. State presentations—all very good. |
| Great location, good food, good fieldtrip. |
| Give more direction for “state of the State” presentations. They should fit in better with the course agenda. Too much David and Nancy on day 2. I think every PREP should at least have one “motivational” speaker. |
| Container and containment should have more time. |
| Week went by quickly—great program. |
| Learned a lot of information on how other states work or do not work with the EPA. |
| Dea and Suzanne do a great job running the program. I always feel at home in Davis. Thanks. The meals were very good, nice variety. |
| Redo breaks—10 minutes every 1˝ hrs. Do breakouts during week. Better flow. |
| Recommend PREP course for registration compliance. A more basic type of course for new registration. Would like to thank EPA for such a wonderful learning experience. I also want to thank Suzanne for keeping us a well oiled machine. I am grateful. Excellent program. Well thought out, planned, and executed! |
| State presenters should not go at the end of the day when everyone is tired. |
| I think a bed bug PREP would be great! |
| Great food, new friends, lots of great information balanced with good laughs—it doesn’t get any better! |
| I sincerely appreciate the course and the obvious efforts to make it a quality event. It was a privilege to attend and I can not stress one importance of continuation of the program. It’s a jungle out there, we’re all in this together and it’s refreshing to have such wonderful individuals to share the experience. |
| The accommodations—hotel, school, and services were very good. Obviously the happy hour was great. The opportunity for us to get together socially is extremely important. |