Seniority alone does not a leader make
Allen Clark
Assistant Chief/Safety Officer
Bell Township (PA) Fire Department
Bruce J. Cavallari (Letters to the Editor, May 1996) states, “No A.S. or B.S. degree will ever equal the knowledge one earns through training and experience” and is concerned over fire service leaders` status accrued via classroom time vs. accumulated experience and training. I agree that “real-world” experience and didactic learning are often very different; however, there are some advantages these people have over those with “seniority” only.
Frequently, people who claim to have 10 to 20 years of experience have only one year repeated 10 to 20 times. I have had the misfortune to witness command officers who learned through the proverbial “school of hard knocks” repeat the mistakes of their predecessors. Coach Vince Lombardi once said, “Practice does not make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.” The fact that a person is the longest or oldest surviving member or has the greatest number of degrees does not necessarily make him any better a leader. A good balance is required.
As for the ads for a fire chief, many of these departments are looking for someone to administer the business end. There have been instances of good administrative chiefs with no fire service background. A business degree may enable them to better cope with the financial problems facing many of today`s municipalities.
My bet is that most people who pursue a degree in fire science or a closely related field do so because of their involvement in the fire service. In teaching classes at our community college, I have only had one student not affiliated with an emergency service provider. They took the course because the administrative class description matched closely that of public administration. I don`t believe we are turning out two- or four-year wonders who go from the halls of ivy to fire chief never having handled a hoseline or ladder. My education is typical of others encountered: starting with a desire to be better equipped to be an officer through classes and progressing through three degrees in fire and safety.
We must accept the reality that until the fire service brings the education level of its leaders to the same level of leaders of other services and businesses, it will not be tolerated as as equal in dealing with budget and political matters. The “good ole boy” syndrome has long been the bane of the fire service. I am tired of seeing us treated like a bastard child. I do not advocate total replacement of training and experience. Data show the numbers of many types of incidents are declining, so experience is on the wane. I always consider quality training a part of any educational system where more than book sense is required for successful job application. What is needed is a formalized pattern to incorporate technical training and knowledge that develops leaders who are as comfortable at a staff meeting with municipal department heads as they are performing as an incident commander at a structure fire.
