BY CRAIG A. HAIGH
Like most good ideas created in the fire service, the idea of sharing instructors between departments came up over coffee at the fire station kitchen table. Rick Fritz, training captain for the High Point (NC) Fire Department, and I shared our thoughts concerning the training needs of our respective departments and how to fulfil them. Although we were from dramatically different-sized departments, we knew that there are very few basic differences between fire departments-training funds are tight no matter where you go. Hence the problem: How do we provide high-quality training using experts in their respective fields without breaking the budget?
We developed the idea that we would come to the other’s department while on duty, each one teaching in his respective area of expertise. Sharing instructors would eliminate the cost of providing expert training, thereby allowing the departments to use these precious funds for student materials and training props instead of salaries and travel expenses. Both departments’ personnel could actually train together in some cases if we instructed a particular class as a team.
We sold the idea to our bosses and set up dates to give the process a try. Could it work? Would the department’s personnel be receptive to an outside instructor? If students from both departments were placed together, how would they get along? Would the size difference between the departments be a problem? How far could this agreement be carried? Could we use personnel in other areas and processes such as consulting and evaluation? Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Overall, however, the potential benefits seemed to outweigh the associated risks.
THE TRYOUT
High Point, the larger of the two departments, needed some basic engine company operations training. As luck would have it, Fritz and I had worked together in developing the engine company operations program for the University of Illinois Fire Service Institute (IFSI). He and I had taught this program with great success with a group of world-class instructors from across the nation. With some minor fine-tuning, the IFSI program could be adapted to the specific needs of High Point, and we could “tag team” the instruction of the class. We devised a schedule that would allow for the class to be repeated nine times over the course of three months-a 126-hour commitment.
So how did it work? As the visiting instructor, I was welcomed with open arms, and an old-timer commented that the program was “excellent and needed training.” In fact, a hoseload that my department in King developed and uses (see “Increasing the Versatility of Your Hosebed,” Fire Engineering, October 1999) was taught to High Point as a possible solution to a problematic 21/2-inch load. High Point is currently evaluating the hoseload as a possible across-the-board departmental change. Overall, the classes went far better than expected-all of the concerns originally expressed were alleviated. The program was a success!
THE PAYBACK
The King Fire Department had several needs, and 126 hours of training was a lot of help! Initially, the engine company operations class that was taught at High Point was repeated at King. Instructors were swapped again to assist with a certified firefighter II class held at King and to teach a variety of topics in our weekly “fire service continuing education program.” Instructors were also used for specific segments of King’s 109-hour, new-employee “Rookie School.” Just as at High Point, instructors were warmly welcomed and received excellent overall class evaluations.
In addition to sharing instructors, the departments also shared assessment center resources and assessors. The King Fire Department uses a comprehensive assessment center process for career and volunteer officers’ promotions and new hires. King does not have the luxury of hiring nonexperienced firefighters because of its limited number of career staff members and therefore must ensure that all career employees have at least a basic level of education and experience. High Point provided guest evaluators with experience in reviewing probationary employees and their potential for future success. These evaluators proved invaluable in selecting candidates who would be able to perform in King’s unique “combination department” environment.
The High Point Fire Department training division is responsible for the promotional testing of fire equipment operators (FEOs), captains, and battalion chiefs. Because of King’s experience with assessment centers and the fact that I have an extensive background in their development, High Point had several options for testing without having to hire a testing group to obtain this information.
OTHER SHARING OPTIONS
North Carolina has no state fire academy, unlike many other states. Thus, recruit training for new career employees is left up to the respective departments. As many departments have discovered, simply hiring firefighters who have completed their certified firefighter training does not necessarily mean that the department has hired qualified firefighting personnel. Certified firefighter programs, although meeting the state’s minimum objectives, vary widely and normally do not spend much time (if any) teaching respect, discipline, and physical conditioning-all topics normally intertwined throughout an academy program. This emphasis, coupled with a strong background in the basics and repetitive drilling, is a key building block of a new firefighter’s successful career.
Most of the larger departments in the state employ their own full-time training staff and routinely hold their own 17- to 24-week academies for new recruits. Fortunately for King and some of the smaller departments, these larger players have been “good neighbors,” allowing recruits from smaller departments to attend their programs. A prime example of this is the Charlotte and Winston-Salem Fire Departments’ (WSFD) hospitality to King. Both organizations willingly opened their doors at no cost to King recruits, providing the needed education and associated foundational skills to be a good career firefighter. In return, King has provided specialty equipment, such as tankers and odd or unique tools our department uses, to provide a well-rounded education for all of the class participants. Instructors to assist in the live burn segments of the academy have also been traded with the WSFD.
King and the WSFD have begun another program that involves sharing resources. The WSFD currently maintains a full-time apparatus maintenance center with mechanics specifically trained and certified to repair fire apparatus. Under a contractual agreement between the two cities, the WSFD performs all repairs and maintenance on King equipment, including providing reserve apparatus. By also generating revenue, this program further validates the WSFD’s employment of apparatus experts for managing and servicing its own fleet. King benefits monetarily by reducing overhead costs and eliminating the need for our own reserve fleet, a true win/win relationship.
The contract also permits King to purchase apparatus under the WSFD specifications and to obtain the assistance of shop personnel for fine-tuning and writing apparatus specifications. The bottom line is this: It only makes good sense for a department that purchases an engine or truck every six to eight years to look for assistance from a department that purchases several vehicles each year. No doubt, using these experts will minimize mistakes and reduce costs through shared contracts.
In this day of “do more with less,” few departments, if any, are truly “stand-alone.” The nation’s fire service is vast and diverse, each organization having levels of expertise and abilities based on its community’s specific needs. No matter how small or large your department, you have something unique that someone else can use in this business. No longer can we stick our heads in the sand and pretend that we can do it all. Now is the time for us to work together and recognize the importance of knowing the names, faces, and capabilities of our neighbors.
CRAIG A. HAIGH is an 18-year veteran of the fire service and is chief of the King (NC) Fire Department. He was previously chief of the Hampton (IL) Fire Rescue and was a career member of the City of Rock Island (IL) Fire Department. Haigh is a nationally registered paramedic with extensive fire and EMS management/training experience, a field staff instructor at the University of Illinois Fire Service Institute, and an instructor within the NC Community College System. He speaks nationally on fire and EMS topics.
