SALINA, Kan. (AP) -- Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina will offer the state's first four-year degree in emergency management, beginning this spring.

The first two classes will be offered in the spring semester, with additional classes starting in the fall of 2013.

John Burchill, an associate professor at Wesleyan, says the program is already drawing a lot of interest.

Burchill expects most of the students to be from the private sector, with about half already working in an emergency management field.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency recommends that people in emergency management have at least a bachelor's degree in the field. The Salina Journal reports (http://bit.ly/UnCyuf ) that's been difficult in Kansas, where only two colleges offer associate degrees.

Students in the program will focus on homeland security, victim services or nongovernment organizations.