24 Mar 2010

U.S Fire Administration announces the National Fire Academy annual outstanding applied research awards

Executive fire officer programme provides senior fire officers with a broad perspective on various challenging facets of fire administration.

The Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Fire Administration has announced the four fire service executives who will receive the National Fire Academy's (NFA) 2009 Annual Outstanding Applied Research Awards. This award recognizes Executive Fire Officer Program (EFOP) students for their research projects. The award winning projects will be presented during the 22nd Executive Fire Officer Symposium on April 9-11, 2010, at the National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

One fire officer will receive both the Outstanding Applied Research Award and induction to the Executive Fire Officer Program Roll of Honor. Captain Stephen Marsar of the Fire Department of New York will be inducted to the Roll of Honor for a grade evaluation of 4.0 received during his four year EFOP experience and for all four Applied Research Projects he completed. Marsar is the sixth inductee among 2,800 alumni to be listed for their superior accomplishment in the 25 year history of the EFOP.

This award recognizes executive fire officer program students for their research projects
"This year our staff reviewed 56 Applied Research Projects which have been initially evaluated at a 4.0 academic level during 2009. In the 25 year history of EFOP, 4.0 is the highest number attained. This fact affirms something special concerning the 25th anniversary year of the EFOP, the quality of the Applied research projects completed within the EFOP is increasingly becoming better," said U.S. Fire Administrator Kelvin J. Cochran.

The EFOP is designed to provide senior fire officers with a broad perspective on various challeng ing facets of fire administration. Over a four-year period, the officers continue their professional development in four courses at the National Fire Academy, which are recommended for either graduate-level or upper division baccalaureate credit equivalency by the American Council on Education. Participants in the program are required to complete an Applied Research Project in their organization, which attempts to resolve a problem or solution through the conduct of original research within six months after the completion of each four course areas.

The EFOP is designed to provide senior fire officers with a broad perspective on various challenging facets of fire administration
U.S. Fire Administrator Cochran continued: "The Applied Research Projects selected this year provide rich examples of research founded upon the belief that scientific approaches to real problems can produce data which will assist not only these communities represented by their EFOP officers, but respond to the complex problems that confront all fire and emergency services organizations across the United States. The range of topics chosen this year for the 2009 Outstanding Research Awards provides an illustrated example of the scope of issues that our senior executives must deal with. I sincerely congratulate them for their excellence. I also would like to commend and congratulate FDNY Captain Marsar for his record of excellence in completing four 4.0 projects. This effort is truly outstanding."

The 2009 Outstanding Research Award recipients are: 

  • Executive development course awardee: Michael Dell'Orfano, Assistant Fire Chief, South Metro Fire Rescue Authority, Centennial Colorado for his project in turnout time analysis for south metro fire rescue authority.
  • Executive analysis of community risk reduction course awardee: Donald Waldron, Fire Lieutenant, Londonderry Fire Department, Londonderry New Hampshire for his project on developing a fall prevention program for older adults in Londonderry, New Hampshire.
  • Executive analysis of fire service operations in emergency management course awardee: Stephen Marsar, Captain, Fire Department of New York, New York City for Developing Activation Protocols for the New York City Fire Department's Incident Management Team.
  • Executive leadership course awardee: Michael Macey, Fire Chief, Laguna Beach Fire Department, Laguna Beach California for his project on evaluating laguna beach fire department's association between cardiopulmonary arrest outcomes and advanced life support (ALS) time standards.