Texas Fire Chief - Fall/Winter 2008 - (Page 21)

needs, one must complete necessary research and obtain supporting documentation. The need was to proactively educate 2,500 fourth grade students in the City of Tyler on the subjects of fi re prevention and safety. Another need was to develop a curriculum to accomplish this task. Tyler is a department of 149 employees with 10 fi re stations. The size and structure of each fi re department will affect how programs are administered. The next step in the development of a program is to select goals, objectives and resources. The mission of the “Fire 4 Education” program is to provide fi re and safety education to every fourth grade class in the City of Tyler four times a year. We believe that by approaching a specific grade level, with an outlined curriculum, we will be able to provide every child with a valuable education that will be carried into adulthood. We believe that the fourth grade level is an appropriate age where children will understand and retain this valuable, life-saving information. To accomplish these goals, a preliminary budget was also developed in order to obtain the necessary resources. Once needs are identified and goals, objectives and resources have been selected, one must design the program. This is where the size and structure of your department and the goals and objectives you have selected will play an integral part of the program. The type of the program I have developed mat not work in your department. In the City of Tyler, there are approximately 2,500 fourth grade students. Divide the students by the 10 fire stations and we have a manageable number of 250 students per station. It does not matter what the situation is; a manageable program can be designed to meet your needs. Implementing the program is the next step. Put as much thought and planning into the program as possible and then implement it into action. Attach all instructions and supporting documentation. We created a curriculum manual with all of the information to be placed at each station. Begin with your mission and vision statements and add any instructions about how the program will work. Then include all of the supporting documentation such as outlines, schedules, forms, lists, etc. Now, get ready for feedback. Feedback comes during the evaluation step. This is one of the most important steps in the process. Firefighters will be a valuable asset in giving feedback on how to improve the program. Be open to changing things in order to improve your program! “Fire 4 Education” was designed as a living, expanding program. This means we must be willing to change as the goals, objectives and resources change. For more information about the Tyler Fire Department’s “Fire 4 Education” program, email Captain Jeff Akin at jakin@tylertexas.com. Here are just a few of the communities that have improved their ISO PPC Classiﬁcation with the asssistance of Mike Pietsch: Villages Waco Brownsville Ft. Worth Lewisville Wolfforth Waxahachie San Marcos Jollyville Lubbock Highland Village El Paso Cy-Fair (HCESD#9) San Antonio The Woodlands Sugar Land Euless Corpus Christi Mesquite Plano Wylie Frisco Coppell Huntsville Cedar Park Tyler Conroe Mike Pietsch, P.E. Civil Engineer Mike Pietsch, P.E. Consulting Services, Inc. 972.271.3292 Phone 972.840.6665 Fax 3101 S. Country Club Rd., Garland, TX 75043-1311 michaelpietsch@tx.rr.com www.isospecialist.com Most Fire Chiefs and their staff will undergo only one (at most two) ISO Survey(s) during their entire career. The ISO grading process is too tedious to master for this one career event. “…Mike’s ongoing efforts helped improve the PPC of the six communities comprising the Villages. Several communities improved 3 classes with Mike’s help. I would recommend his services to any community that was seriously trying to improve their PPC rating ” Anthony “Cleve” Calagna, Fire Chief, Villages, Texas ISO Consulting Endorsed by Texas Fire Chiefs Association (TFCA) Specializing in: • • • • Improving Communities’ Public Protection Classiﬁcation (PPC) Rating ﬁ Fire Station Locations Alternative Water Supplies (Folda-Tank Water Shuttles) Texas Addendum Evaluation TEXAS FIRE CHIEF Fall/Winter 2008 376465_Mike.indd 1 5/20/08 21 8:49:51 AM http://www.isospecialist.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Texas Fire Chief - Fall/Winter 2008

Texas Fire Chief - Fall/Winter 2008 Contents Executive Director’s Report Texas Fire Chiefs Academy Project Reports Southwest Fire Rescue Conference Program Membership Application Customer Service Orientation in Fire Rescue Departments A Visit to the E-One Plant Index to Advertisers

Texas Fire Chief - Fall/Winter 2008

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