The ISFSI has joined with other fire service organizations to comment on the proposed rule making for the Public Safety Officer's Benefit Program. The Department of Justice administers the program and has proposed several changes that could have a negative impact on firefighters.  For example, one proposed revision would change "approved" training to "mandatory" training for a fallen firefighter to be eligible for benefits.  The ISFSI strongly disagrees with this change and has provided comments. 
You can learn more about this issue by going to the Congressional Fire Services Institute website at www.cfsi.org.  Thanks to the CFSI for coordinating the comments from the fire service stakeholders! 

The ISFSI awarded a complimentary membership to Battalion Chief Danny Gray of Fairfax (VA) Fire & Rescue.  Chief Gray won the Near Miss Report of the Year from the Firefighter Near Miss Program.  Pictured are ISFSI President Eddie Buchanan presenting the membership to Fairfax Fire Chief, Ron Mastin.  Learn more about the Near Miss Program by going to www.firefighternearmiss.com.

Lawrence William (Larry) Davis, Jr., 63, passed away August 3, 2008 at his home in Corpus Christi, TX.  Larry was born October 22, 1944 in Washington, PA to the late Lawrence William Davis, Sr. and Mary Ann Case Davis.

He was a noted fire service author, speaker, and instructor who taught thousands of fire fighters across America over his 40 years of service to the fire fighting community. His works and teachings were revered by many as “ahead of his time” and his impact on the American fire service – especially the rural community – was perhaps paralleled to none.

Larry started his fire fighting service with the Canonsburg, PA Volunteer Fire Department in the mid-1960’s.  He spent 4 years in the United States Air Force where he rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant in their fire service.  Upon leaving the USAF, he spent almost 30 years working in industrial fire and loss prevention with Industrial Risk Insurers (IRI) while at the same time gaining national recognition for his work with the rural fire fighting community.  

Larry’s work as a fire service instructor was exceptional and he rose to Chairman of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors on the mid-1990’s. Upon his retirement from IRI he and his wife moved to Texas where he became a Staff Division Chief with the Refinery Terminal Fire Company and then with Industrial Emergency Services.  

He was a full-member of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers and was a Certified Fire Protection Engineer.  Much of his life-long commitment to improving fire protection can be found in the textbooks that he authored. He was also one of the founders of the Rural Firefighting Institute and was Vice President of GBW Associates, LLC, a fire protection training and consulting firm.  

He is survived by his wife, Mary Ann Davis of Corpus Christi; his daughter Kayce Davis of New York City, NY; his brother and family: Mark, Connie, Tom, Mary and Emilie Davis, of Westminster, MD; his stepson and family: Christopher, Sonya and Kyle Conrad of Storrs, CT.

A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, August 30, 2008 at Island in the Son, United Methodist Church, 15602 Hwy 361, Corpus Christi, TX 78418.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Island in the Son Church or to the donor’s local volunteer fire company.  Friends wishing to pay tribute through words can email their remembrances to ldavis@gotbigwater.com.

The ISFSI is proud to announce that The Indiana Fire Instructors Association has been approved as a State Chapter of the ISFSI! You can learn more about the IFIA by going to www.ifia.org!

We want your feedback on "The Voice" Podcast! The Voice used to be a publication produced by the ISFSI for our members. It offered training resources, articles and other fire service info. Today, the Voice is a "radio show" that features issues that challenge fire service instructors. Let us know what you would like to hear on The Voice! We want to ensure it is meeting the needs of our members. To offer your ideas, email our host, Steve Pegram, at spegram@ci.xenia.oh.us. You can hear The Voice by going to www.fireengineering.com and clicking on "Podcast."

Fire Engineering Books & Videos is pleased to offer ISFSI members a 20% discount on their purchases. To take advantage of this offer just enter the special code in the coupon code field of www.FireEngineeringBooks.com or mention the code when calling 1.800.752.9764. Offer good only on Fire Engineering products purchased directly from Fire Engineering Books & Videos. Offer good through June 2009. ISFSI members should have received their code in an email blast. Members who did not receive that email can contact the home office for assistance.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has a document that might impact you! The “National EMS Scope of Practice Model” outlines the future of EMS and each state will decide if they will adopt the plan. The plan, as written, calls for the elimination of the Emergency Medical Technician - Intermediate Level. Instead, the plan calls for EMT-Basic, Advanced EMT, and Paramedic. The Advanced EMT level lacks many of the ALS skills that EMT-Intermediates have practiced in the past. If your department provides EMS services, you should become familiar with the “Scope of Practice” and find out where your state stands on the issue! Even more so, develop an understanding of how it might impact your department Look for an official position on this issue from the ISFSI coming soon. You can click on this story to access a link for the Scope document.

The ISFSI is proud to announce a special discount for our members on the instructor text, Fire Service Instructor: Principals & Practice from Jones & Bartlett Publishing. The instructor text was reviewed and endorsed by the ISFSI. The text is due for release on August 10, 2008. You can pre-order through the Jones & Bartlett website. Members should have recieved a special email with the discount code. If you did not, contact the home office. For more information on the new instructor text, go to: http://www.jbpub.com!

The ISFSI is proud to announce the newest feature on it's website, the ISFSI Academy! The "Academy" offers ISFSI members access to key information sharing and training opportunities. To access the Academy, simply click on the "ISFSI ACADEMY" button on the main page. You can self enroll to gain access to the site!

The ISFSI is proud to announce the members who have met the necessary criteria and have been selected to represent the instructors on the SAFER Grant Peer Review Panel. The team will travel to the National Fire Academy in July to review grant applications from departments from around the country. A special THANK YOU to these members for stepping up! Vince Moffitt, Farmington, New Mexico Richard Burks, Artesia, New Mexico Lou Molino, College Station, Texas Johnny Leos, Bogalusa, Louisiana Donald Striejewske, Bonaire, Georgia Kevin Grebinar, Sterling, Massachusetts Bruce Ziegle, Park Forest, Illinois The ISFSI will also be represented at the Grant Programs Criteria Meeting to be held in July. This meeting is where the major fire service stakeholders convene to determine the priorities for the grant guidance. The ISFSI will be there to support the interest of the fire service instructor and training!

ISFSI Member Chief David B. Fulmer selected as the first alternate for the 2008 Harvard Fire Executive Fellowship! Chief David B. Fulmer was among approximately 75 applicants, representing the National fire service, that applied for the Harvard Fire Executive Fellowship to attend the “Senior Executives in State and Local Government at the John F. Kennedy School of Government located on the Harvard campus in Cambridge, MA. This three week program provides training that assists officials in assessing the tasks they face in managing today's results driven government agency. The program concentrates on: Developing new conceptual frameworks for addressing policy issues; exploring the relationships between citizens and government; examining the ethical and professional responsibilities of leadership; and exchanging ideas with experienced faculty and participants from diverse backgrounds. The Harvard Fire Executive Fellowship is a joint initiative between the International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Fire Service Training Association; National Fire Protection Association, and the United States Fire Administration that fund eight scholarships per year for senior fire executives to attend the $11,000.00 program. David was among 12 candidates that traveled to the National Emergency Training Center, located in Emmitsburg, MD to participate in the interview process. He was selected as the 1st alternate for the 2008 program, which meant he would be provided an opportunity to attend should one of the 8 candidates be unable to fulfill the three week commitment. He was notified during the week of May 12 that an opening existed and will be attending the July session.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) posted today the Program Guidance document for the FY2008 SAFER Grants. Under the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2008, Congress appropriated $190 million for SAFER Grants. Beginning May 27, 2008, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will begin accepting applications for SAFER Grants. The deadline for receipt of the SAFER Grant applications will be 5:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on June 27, 2008. Download the grant guidance at http://www.firegrantsupport.com/safer/

The first episode of The Voice is now available on the Fire Engineering Website! This episode features Bobby Halton, Editor-in-Chief of Fire Engineering Magazine and Forest Reeder, 2008 winner of the George D. Post, Instructor of the Year Award. Go to this link to www.fireengineering.com and click on "podcasts."

The 2008 United States/ United Kingdom Chief Fire Officer Symposium was conducted on May 1-5th, 2008 in Newark, Delaware and convened over forty delegate Chief Fire Officers and fire service professionals from throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. The 14th annual symposium theme was; Preparing our Fire Services for the Challenges of the Future. The symposium began with presentations conducted at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland and included a tour of the Academy campus and facilities and viewing of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial. FEMA Regional Administrator William Peterson (ret. Fire Chief, City of Plano, Texas) opened the programs and welcomed the delegates to the NFA. At the conclusion of the presentations at the NFA, the delegates traveled to the battlefields at Gettysburg for a guided tour of the national park. The symposium was reconvened at the W.L. Gore Barksdale facilities where the US and UK delegates were presented programs addressing a while latitude of topics that included; Global Threat of Terrorism, Developing Competencies in Risk Critical Operations, Managing System Failures in a Political or Media Environment, Terrorism and United Kingdom Resilience, Hurricane Katrina and Rita; Impact Two Years Later, Fire Brigade Local Area Agreements in the United Kingdom, US Approach to Executive Development, Emerging Concepts on Fire Prevention, Current Trends in the UK for outside appointments, Emerging Communications Concepts presented by Motorola, and Consolidation of Fire Brigades in the United Kingdom. ISFSI Second Vice President Christopher Naum presented a focused presentation on Modern Building Construction and Line of Duty Deaths of Firefighters that provided a forum for delegates on both sides of the pond to discuss firefighter safety and line of duty death reduction efforts, training issues and effective command risk management methodologies. The interaction, dialog and camaraderie between the US and UK delegates provided stimulating conversations and view points on the challenges facing the fire services in both countries and best practices and lessons learned. Look for information to be posted on the 2009 US/UK Symposium at the end of this year.

The ISFSI is seeking 12 members to represent the instructors as peer grant reviewers for the Staffing for Adequate Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant National Emergency Training Center (NETC) in Emmitsburg, Maryland. The grant review will take place on July 14-18, 2008 and reviewers must be able to travel on July 13th and July 19th. While you will not be compensated as a reviewer, the Department of Homeland Security will cover travel costs, food and lodging. Interested ISFSI members must submit their name, resume, and brief description of their department and experience to President Eddie Buchanan no later than May 23, 2008 at 17:00 EST. Email information to eddiebuchanan@mac.com with SAFER Peer Review in the subject line. We will announce the selected members by May 30, 2008. Those members will be forwarded to If you have not had a chance to participate in the peer review process of the grants program, you are highly encouraged to do so. You will get to meet firefighters from across the country and review a variety of grant requests. It is a highly valuable learning experience. THIS IS AN EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT TO ISFSI MEMBERS ONLY!