U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano to visit LI on Monday

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet A. Napolitano on Monday will make her first visit to the Bethpage-based Applied Science Foundation for Homeland Security, a member of the Long Island Forum for Technology family of companies.

Napolitano is the first cabinet member to visit the foundation since its founding after Sept. 11. Her visit is intended to help her learn more about the foundation’s role as a nongovernmental organization that bridges the public and private sectors within the homeland security enterprise.

Among those expected to welcome Napolitano are Reps. Peter King (R-Seaford) and Steve Israel (D-Huntington), foundation management and members of the first responder community.

She is scheduled to tour the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management, which is housed at the foundation’s Morrelly Center.

Napolitano’s visit is to culminate with a town-hall meeting attended by representatives from the region’s public emergency response, military and public transportation communities, and its manufacturing and higher education sectors.

The foundation is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to help protect the United States from man-made and natural disasters by bringing together, and working with, the public, private and academic sectors to develop and commercialize first responder-driven products and technologies.

The foundation also offers up-to-date training and exercise programs for homeland security and homeland defense personnel. Its facility also can serve as a command-and-control center during a local or regional catastrophic incident.