Southwestern honors Fire Chiefs Association as Industry Partner of the Year, May 23

SWOCC release – Coos Bay, OR – Southwestern Oregon Community College is pleased to honor the Southwestern Oregon Fire Chiefs Association (SWOFCA) with the 2022 Career Technical Education (CTE) Industry Partner of the Year Award. “While the fire service often receives thanks for their dedication to protecting our communities, not everyone realizes how much additional work goes on behind the scenes to prepare and train the response team. The support our local fire agencies have given, and continue to give, to the Southwestern Fire Science Program is tremendous,” remarked Erica Wisner, Fire Science Associate Professor. “We rely on student internships with the local fire agencies for hands-on professional experience, training, and mentorship that make our students’ dreams a reality. Our local fire agencies provide a significant investment in equipment and gear, and run hundreds of hours of extra trainings each year to get student firefighters qualified and ready to respond in the field. “Between the Fire Departments and rural Fire Protection Districts, the Coos Forest Protection Association, HazMat response team, Coast Guard, County Sheriffs, State Fire Marshalls, local dispatchers, investigators, ambulance and medical services personnel who are willing to work directly with students in and out of the classroom, this is a wonderfully rich training environment for all-hazard response.” Fire science classes have been offered at Southwestern Oregon Community College since 1962. In the late 1970s and 1980s, local fire agencies helped build a shared training facility on the college campus. A significant portion of the program’s training equipment was donated or maintained by local fire agencies, along with in-kind instructional resources, to support a full associate degree program. Both college and fire agency training programs have grown over time to match the increasing requirements of state and national training standards, and continue to give our students the competitive edge to succeed in professional fire service careers. Up to a dozen Southwestern fire science and paramedicine students receive housing and tuition stipends each year through fire department residential intern programs. Scholarships are offered for students in fire science and related fields, including the Baughman Memorial Apprenticeship Scholarship, Randy Carpenter Memorial Foundation Scholarship, and others. Most of the fire officers and instructors in the Coos Bay area have been involved with Southwestern as students, instructors, advisors, or all three. Firefighting is a team sport. Maintaining and growing the craft is a mission far larger than any one person’s working lifetime. Southwestern Oregon Community College is proud to recognize SWOFCA as long-time partners for excellence in Career and Technical Education. To learn more about Southwestern’s career technical training programs visit www.socc.edu, or call 541-888-7371 to make an appointment with an advisor. You can learn more about our local fire departments through their individual web sites.