Fire Academy Lists ’79 Courses
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The National Fire Academy will present all its courses in each of four two-week “clusters” in the coming year. This is a departure from this year’s presentation of courses throughout the year at many locations.
Another national academy innovation is the method of selecting students. Registration for the cluster courses is open to all fire fighters, who are invited to submit individual applications directly to the academy.
Cluster courses are scheduled for: Feb. 5-17 in San Francisco at the Presidio-Letterman Army Institute of Research,
Mar. 10-23 in New Haven at Harkness Hall at Yale University,
June 17-30 in Atlanta at the Urban Life Center at Georgia State Univesity, and
Aug. 6-17 in St. Paul, at the Earle Brown Continuing Education Center at the St. Paul Campus of the University of Minnesota.
The courses and their length in days are as follows:
Fire/arson investigation, 10;
Educational methodology 1,5;
Labor/management relations, 4;
Management of a fire service physical fitness program, 4 (Atlanta and St. Paul only);
Preparation for master planning, 3;
Fire/arson detection, 3:
Public fire education orientation, 2 (Atlanta and St. Paul only);
Pesticide fire and spill control, 2;
Disaster planning for hazardous materials, 2 (Atlanta and St. Paul only);
Fire safe building design, 5;
NFPA Life Safety Code, 4 (all except San Francisco);
Management overview I, 2 1/2;
Management overview II,2 1/2;
Smoke detector training, 3;
National fire incident reporting system, 3; and
Risk analysis, 2.
Because the New Haven dates conflict with the Fire Department Instructors Conference in Memphis March 19-22, pesticide fire and spill control, management overview I and management overview II will be offered twice. These courses will he given March 10 and 11, the Saturday and Sunday before the regular schedule starts in New Haven on Monday, March 12. It is possible that the management overview courses, which are 2 1/2 days, may start on Friday afternoon, March 10, if arrangements can be made. This will avoid compacting these courses into two days.
As was done this year, applicants for the cluster course program may be nominated by state training directors, state fire marshals and chiefs of fire departments that meet the IAFC definition of a metropolitan fire department—at least 400 members in the department or a minimum city population of 200,000.
At the same time, individuals may apply directly to participate in any course. They first should write to the academy for an application form.
In either case, applications for courses must be sent to: National Fire Academy, Student Enrollment Section, P.O. Box 19518, Washington, D.C. 20036.
Nominations must be at the academy 120 days before the desired courses start and student application forms must be received 90 days before courses start. The applicants will be notified of their acceptance about 60 days before the course starting date and those who are not selected will be notified by mail and invited to reapply at a later date. Where there are more applicants than class space, nominated students will get priority consideration.
Registration fees
During the coming year, there will be a $15 registration charge for each course with the exception of the Fire/arson investigation course. Because this is a two-week class, the registration fee will be $30.
The selection of applicants, explained David M. McCormack, superintendent of the National Fire Academy, will be based on three criteria:
- The impact the applicant is expected to have on his home community,
- The opportunity to teach that the fire department or agency that employs the applicant is expected to give him, and
- Something described as equitability that will provide some balance in course representation from paid and volunteer fire departments as well as large and small departments.
In addition to the usual information about the applicant’s name, employer and course desired, the student enrollment application form requires information about the applicant’s position and responsibilities, his qualifications for participating in the course and how the knowledge he gains will be used by his employer or in his community. If the applicant’s expenses will be paid by his fire department or other agency, then his application form must be signed by a responsible officer.
Interim program
In discussing next year’s program, McCormack emphasized that the cluster course delivery concept is an interim device that will be abandoned when the academy moves into a permanent physical plant. Right now, St. Joseph College in Emmitsburg, Md., is the frontrunner for selection as the academy site.
McCormack sees a need to keep his nine instructors together in Washington as much as possible in the coming year so they can concentrate on planning for the opening of the permanent academy site, and the cluster courses will make this possible. The four two-week cluster programs will mean that all instructors will be out of Washington for the same eight weeks next year. Even with two-week vacations, most of the instructors will be together in Washington the greater part of the coming year to work on the opening of the academy site. During this year, several instructors were always teaching in a large number of places throughout the 10 federal districts.
Another benefit derived from the cluster delivery system, McCormack explained, is that about $40,000 in travel expenses will be saved next year when instructors travel to only four course locations. The superintendent views this as important in a year when the academy received no increase in its budget.
Course schedule
The fire/arson investigation, educational methodology I, labor/management relations, physical fitness program management, preparation for master planning and fire/arson detection courses will start at all locations on the first Monday of the two-week period.
Public fire education orientation will start on Thursday of the first week. Smoke detector training and national fire incident reporting will be given twice. They both will begin on Friday of the first week. Detector training will start again on Tuesday of the second week and fire reporting on Wednesday. Pesticide and spill control will open on Saturday of the first week at all locations, and disaster planning for hazardous materials will begin on Friday of the first week in Atlanta and Minneapolis and will be repeated on Thursday and Friday of the second week in those cities. The risk analysis course will start on the Saturday of the first week everywhere but in New Haven, where it will be offered March 10 and 11, the Saturday and Sunday preceding the full program.
During the second week, fire safe building design, NFPA Life Safety Code and management overview I will start on Monday. Management overview II will start on Wednesday afternoon.