SWAN LAKE, NY — Well, if you’re a student in the 11th or 12th grade, Sullivan BOCES and the Sullivan County Bureau of Fire have the answer for you. They have teamed up to offer a new fire science program at the county’s Emergency Management Training Center.

The program is for students interested in becoming volunteer firefighters in their local communities, or those who want to enter the world of paid professionals in the challenging, yet highly rewarding field.

It consists of one year of study, and at the end of the course, students will earn interior and exterior firefighting certifications along with American Heart Association CPR and Automated External Defibrillators (AED), along with FEMA’s Incident Command System and the National Incident Management System introductory courses.

According to Sullivan BOCES, upon completion of the program, students are eligible to take the New York State Basic Exterior Firefighter Operations (BEFO) exam, followed by the SCBA/Interior Firefighting Operations (IFO) exam.

 The Fire Science program adheres to the New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control curriculum, and those students who pass the exams are then qualified to take the National Firefighter I examination.

There are virtually limitless career opportunities in the fire services: firefighter, military firefighter, fire dispatcher, 911 dispatcher, wildland firefighter, forest ranger, fire investigator, fire inspector, fire marshall, fire sprinkler technician, fire science professor, emergency service manager, alarm technician, safety consultant and fire engineer.

Sullivan BOCES is also running an emergency medical technician (EMT) program.

“The partnership that we have with the county is phenomenal in regards to the EMT program and the upcoming fire science program,” said Jeffrey Molusky, executive principal of Sullivan BOCES Career & Technical Education Center.

Of the new fire science offering, he added, “We are hoping that we will have enough interest to start up in the fall, and it will feed into the EMT program.” 

“The EMS folks in the county as well as the firefighters serve a vital role,” said Donna Hemmer, Sullivan BOCES director of communications. “Having the fire services program here at the center, and having this connection is a valuable resource throughout the community… It’s a great partnership.”

She explained that the objective is to offer both EMT and Fire Science to local junior- and senior-level high school students. In effect, they would graduate from both, creating cross-trained personnel to serve in volunteer or paid positions.

“They can serve in multiple roles within the community, and the more young people we get involved will be a huge asset,” Hemmer said.

According to John Hauschild, a 43-year member of the Jeffersonville Volunteer Fire Department and the county’s deputy commission of the Division of Public Safety, the partnership between the local BOCES and the Bureau of Fire will encourage students to take the fire science course as juniors, and follow up with the EMT course as seniors.

In March, the training center hosted an open house to introduce prospective students and their parents to the new courses. It featured representatives from local fire departments and critical care flight program Life Net.

Hauschild cleared what he referred to as “a lot of misconceptions” about the fire science course, explaining that students do not have to be members of a fire department before signing up, but that after graduation a world of opportunities awaits.

“We will try to hook them up with a department in their jurisdiction,” he said. “Once we get the program up and running, the hope is that it will snowball and continue to grow… Once these kids get involved, we will get a bunch of people in here.”

He made a pitch to parents. “If you have a child who is interested, please reach out to Sullivan    BOCES or our training center [located at 615 Old White Lake Turnpike in Swan Lake].”

 On the subject of recruitment and retention in the fire service, he added, “We’re not at the point [of panicking] yet. The panic stage where you call and nobody’s coming, but enrollment is down across the nation.”

Joe Mall is currently chief of the Jeffersonville Volunteer Fire Department and has been an active firefighter there going on 26 years. He is currently serving as fire training coordinator.

Of the urgent need for more volunteer firefighters, he said, “Like everyone else, we need some new blood. We’re doing all right; we’re getting the job done; but we would like to see new people join.”

Enrollment for the fire science course is currently open. It is scheduled to commence in September if enough students apply. To learn more about the Sullivan BOCES Career & Technical Education Fire Science course, call 845/295-4152 or email www.scboces.org/CTE.