Established in 2008 under Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21 (HSPD-21), the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH) is a federal organization and component of the Uniformed Services University (USU). The National Center is governed by the federal interagency as a collaboration between the Departments of Defense (DoD), State (DOS), Health and Human Services (HHS), Homeland Security (DHS), Transportation (DOT), and Veterans Affairs (VA). The mission of the National Center is to advance the Nation’s medical and public health readiness for disasters. In carrying out this mission, the National Center leads federal efforts to develop and propagate core curricula, research, and training related to medicine and public health in disasters and is charged with maintaining the Nation’s joint disaster medicine and public health science and education program for all executive departments. The National Center is first and foremost a service and support organization and operates at the behest of the federal interagency, which makes transparency, coordination, and collaboration core to its organizing principles.