Associate Degree For Firemen
Barbados' chief fire officer Wilfred Marshall says his officers are moving to improve their certification locally.
Moments after receiving several pieces of equipment from the Florida-based Hillsborough Community College, the fire chief said that they were currently working with the Barbados Community College to get an associate degree programme in fire science going.
"That is being worked on as we speak. This is a collaboration between the Barbados Community College and Hillsborough Community College. There are a number of little details to be worked out," he said, adding that the parties involved met as recently as yesterday to discuss the developments.
Dean of the associate science programmes at Hillsborough, Jack Evans said that they were working on an arrangement where when trainers from that Community College provided instruction to local fire officers, the BCC would receive the grades and be able to apply them to the transcripts of those officers here towards their degrees.
Marshall added: "We are working towards ensuring that Barbadian firefighters and by extension Caribbean firefighters have a facility resource where they can upgrade their education in terms of their certification and qualification in fire science.
"The whole world is moving away from just plain paper, now you have to show that you have received the particular qualification and credits in the disciplines. We are moving forward in the Fire Service as well in that respect."
Currently, he said, a number of the officers sought their own qualifications in areas including management courses at the University of the West Indies. He said though that it was becoming increasingly popular in recent years for officers to complete their associate degrees in fire science in Kentucky, and as the administrators of the service, they were trying to ensure that there was more local training related to their profession.
"So while they are going after the general education, we as the Fire Service administration are seeking to make sure they have the opportunity to seek fire related qualifications. We look forward to the day when Barbadians can apply for work in any other Caribbean country and we have access to qualifications where we can say we have done this and done that, rather than the chief of the service saying he was part of the service and this is what he did."
He said he believed the improved qualification could certainly lift the profile of the service and the officers, as the public sometimes held the view that the service was a brawn rather than a brains required profession.
"We are now talking a lot more about fire prevention activities, we are talking about Hazmat situations which does not require brawns but requires brains and that is the type of fire officer we are also trying to attract. So when we have them in the service, that is the direction we want to go."
The Service this morning received four Hazmat training suits; three contamination showers, 45 harnesses, 27 oxygen cylinders and 17 personal alert safety devices in the donation from the Hillsborough College. (LB)
Source: news.barbadostoday.bb
Moments after receiving several pieces of equipment from the Florida-based Hillsborough Community College, the fire chief said that they were currently working with the Barbados Community College to get an associate degree programme in fire science going.
"That is being worked on as we speak. This is a collaboration between the Barbados Community College and Hillsborough Community College. There are a number of little details to be worked out," he said, adding that the parties involved met as recently as yesterday to discuss the developments.
Dean of the associate science programmes at Hillsborough, Jack Evans said that they were working on an arrangement where when trainers from that Community College provided instruction to local fire officers, the BCC would receive the grades and be able to apply them to the transcripts of those officers here towards their degrees.
Marshall added: "We are working towards ensuring that Barbadian firefighters and by extension Caribbean firefighters have a facility resource where they can upgrade their education in terms of their certification and qualification in fire science.
"The whole world is moving away from just plain paper, now you have to show that you have received the particular qualification and credits in the disciplines. We are moving forward in the Fire Service as well in that respect."
Currently, he said, a number of the officers sought their own qualifications in areas including management courses at the University of the West Indies. He said though that it was becoming increasingly popular in recent years for officers to complete their associate degrees in fire science in Kentucky, and as the administrators of the service, they were trying to ensure that there was more local training related to their profession.
"So while they are going after the general education, we as the Fire Service administration are seeking to make sure they have the opportunity to seek fire related qualifications. We look forward to the day when Barbadians can apply for work in any other Caribbean country and we have access to qualifications where we can say we have done this and done that, rather than the chief of the service saying he was part of the service and this is what he did."
He said he believed the improved qualification could certainly lift the profile of the service and the officers, as the public sometimes held the view that the service was a brawn rather than a brains required profession.
"We are now talking a lot more about fire prevention activities, we are talking about Hazmat situations which does not require brawns but requires brains and that is the type of fire officer we are also trying to attract. So when we have them in the service, that is the direction we want to go."
The Service this morning received four Hazmat training suits; three contamination showers, 45 harnesses, 27 oxygen cylinders and 17 personal alert safety devices in the donation from the Hillsborough College. (LB)
Source: news.barbadostoday.bb
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