AISD Fire Academy
The Arlington Fire Department, Tarrant County College, and the Arlington Independent School District (AISD) have teamed up to train local high school students in firefighting and emergency medical skills.
Students are accepted from high schools across the city of Arlington. By the time they graduate, these students will be ready to step right into the workforce as real firefighters and EMTs.
How to Get In
To get accepted into the program, students need to meet a few requirements:
- Maintain an 80 average (a 7.0 GPA).
- Have good attendance and a clean discipline record.
- Fill out an application and write a one-page essay.
- Pass a physical agility test with the fire department.
- Complete a panel interview.
Leaders choose the best applicants based on all this information. Each class has an approximate capacity of 20 students.
What the Program is Like
The Arlington Fire Department and Tarrant County College both provide leaders/instructors to run the program every day. They use official training lessons from the Texas Commission on Fire Protection (TCFP). Students practice the hands-on skills and study the information they need to pass the state's official written and physical tests. To help students stay on track with both the Fire Academy and their regular high school classes, leaders monitor their performance every six weeks. Students also engage in community service and help mentor incoming classes within the program. Coordinators also work closely with parents to help with fundraising and any behavior issues.
The Rewards of Graduation
By graduation, students gain the skills, training, discipline, knowledge, and confidence they need to start working for a fire department within Texas. They graduate with:
- TCFP Firefighter 1 and 2
- TCFP Hazmat Awareness and Operations
- A National Registry EMT certification (which lets them look for a job anywhere in the United States)
- Up to 24 hours of dual credit college hours
A Model for Success
Before this program started in August 2011, the school district did not offer any dual-credit programs of this kind. The AISD Fire Academy proved that high school students could succeed in professional college-level courses. Because of this success, the district now offers 17 different dual-credit programs in various other professional fields. All of these programs use a similair model that the Fire Academy created, allowing students to earn college credits and career certifications all while in high school.
Support the Academy with a donation.