Attention Instructors

The State no longer sends written notice via US Mail to an Instructor whose certification is about to expire. Retaining your certification is a personal responsibility. Check your certificate for the expiration date or go to the IDHS website to verify certification by last name at the following address https://oas.in.gov/dfbs/emsonline/ems/person.do?method=personLookup

The State does provide an electronic notice to Instructors whose certification expires within the next 90 days. In order for you to receive this electronic notice YOU MUST be on our email list. To be included on electronic email notices about Fire Marshal, State training, or Fire/EMS certification issues please send an email to jbuckman@dhs.in.gov.

Instructors and Students

Back on January 14, 2009 the Board of Firefighter Personnel Standards and Education after one year of discussion made significant changes to the law on how students can take written examination for certification.

The biggest challenge for students is that they must take certification examinations in order. The student must meet the prerequisite before they sit to take an examination.

If an examination is taken out of order the test may be invalidated.

We have been trying to educate and inform instructors and students since early 2009. We still experience a significant number of examinations being submitted where the students don’t meet the prerequisite.

When a test is submitted where the prerequisites are not met then the tests are not processed and certifications are not issued.

Here are a couple of examples:

Problem

A student who is 17 years of age takes a mandatory written and practical examination.

Answer

In order to take a written or practical examination a student must be 18 years of age. This test will not be processed.

Problem

A firefighter takes a safety officer course and completes the examination and submits an application for certification. The firefighter is not a certified Fire Officer I

Answer

The application for safety officer certification will not be processed because the firefighter was not a certified Fire Officer I at the time of the examination.

Action

Instructors review the prerequisite for every course of instruction. Ask the students to go on the IDHS website and bring documentation to prove they have met the prerequisites.

Proctors – when giving a written examination have the student verify they have met the prerequisite.

Effective March 15, 2010 any test submitted where the student does not meet the prerequisite will result in the test being invalidated. The student will be denied certification.

If you have questions about prerequisites email State Fire Training Director John M. Buckman III at jbuckman@dhs.in.gov

Instructors

You may have heard about audits being conducted by the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.

These audits are being done to insure compliance with the rules established by the Board of Firefighter Personnel Standards and Education. Additionally the audits are validating the integrity of the training system being provided throughout the State.

Why an audit?

We have heard over time from many Fire Chiefs that students complete certification training but can’t do the job.

We began looking into this issue and found that in many cases Instructors and Evaluators were not actually conducting the skills examination. In some cases the evaluator simulated the skill.

For the most part Instructors and Evaluators are trying very hard to make sure the students are tested and evaluated based upon the Board rules.

Here are a couple of examples

An instructor submits applications for certification from a number of students for Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics. The evaluator is audited and admits that the practical skills examination was not conducted.

This resulted in the Instructor being suspended for six months. The students were denied certification.

A second example relates to a Instructor II/III examination. Again the lead evaluator when audited admits that no practical skills were done.

This resulted in the Lead Evaluator being suspended and the students Fire Instructor I certification being revoked and their Instructor II/III being denied.

Here is a third example of an Instructor II/III given a written examination for mandatory certification. All students achieved a score of 84% on the written examination; all students missed the same questions; all students provided the same answer to the same questions that were wrong. The instructor admitted in a telephone call that he had given the students the answers to some of the questions and that he must have answered some of them wrong. He did not want the students to get in trouble. These students were taking mandatory written test.

What is the Instructor to do? Where are the rules? What are the rules?

As a certified Instructor, you are required to be familiar with the rules of the Indiana Board of Firefighting Standards and Education. Information about the Board rules online training package has been developed at http://indianafirstresponder.org/. Visit this website and obtain additional information on the rules and procedures.

If you have questions please don’t hesitate to contact me by email State Fire Training Director John M. Buckman III at jbuckman@dhs.in.gov

District 5 is proud to host the

Mobile Live Fire Training Trailer

Train-The-Trainer

Location: Washington Township - Avon Fire Department

Dates: January 13, 2010

Details: If you would like to sign up please contact Jim Adams @ 317-281-3647

Ivy Tech Testing

A voluntary program has been implemented for students, Instructors and department who desire to know immediately if they have successfully passed a written fire certification test.

Written paper tests are still available from the Firefighter Training System.

The Lead Instructor may decide to not give paper tests for a particular course or the student may choose to pursue the Ivy Tech testing option on their own.

The following are the procedures for taking a certification exam at Ivy Tech:

1. Anyone wishing to take a certification exam must meet all existing exam prerequisites prior to the exam date. If it is discovered that the prerequisites have not been met the exam results will be voided and the exam will have to be retaken after the prerequisites have been met.
2. Go to http://www.ivytech.edu to find the nearest testing center to you. Call the campus and tell them you would like to schedule an appointment to take your exam. They should forward you to the testing center to set it up. Upon arrival, they will have you sign a statement of understanding that you are eligible to take the exam.
   1. Each Ivy Tech campus may have different test center hours on various days so make sure and call ahead for an appointment.
   2. When you make the appointment you will need to know the name of the exam (like Fire Officer 1). 
3. There is a $15 fee for testing. The $15 testing fee is the responsibility of the student. Payment may be made at the time of scheduling or on the day of the appointment.  We take Visa, Discover, MasterCard, and checks.  You must pay at the Business Office of you want to pay cash.
4. On the scheduled testing day you will need to bring a current photo ID and your PSID number.
5. You will need to know your Course Number before you show up at Ivy Tech..
6. DO NOT turn in your application for certification into Ivy Tech. The application MUST be forwarded to State of Indiana, IFTS Certification Section.

Questions about this voluntary testing option may be submitted to David Probo at dprobo@dhs.in.gov

District 5 Training Council

Meeting for January 2009

Meeting started at 1400 at Greenfield fire Headquarters

Members in attendance

Todd Heier

Jim Adams

Bruce Nulliner

Chuck Rutledge

Jim Wolsiffer

Tim Babbitt

Doug Pyle

Andy Ebbert

Dave DeVore

Bryan Wolfe

Kerry O’Haver

Charlie Fadale

Gene Konzen

Matt Culp

Eric Shields

Les McConnell

First Item on the agenda

Old Business – no one had anything

New Business

Courses for the district

Boone County – had no rep

Instructor I course need a date and location

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics 1-17-09

Fire Officer I 2-21-09

Survival Training need a start date

Hamilton County – had no rep, other than the chair

Instructor I – need a start date

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics 1-26-09 canceled not enough signed up

Fire Officer I need a date and location

Survival Training need a date and location

Hancock County - had rep Les McConnell

Firefighter I/II 4-7-09

Haz Mat Awareness/Ops 2-7-08

Survival Training need date and location

Instructor I need date and location

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics – Done

Fire Officer I need start date and location

Hendricks County – had rep Jim Adams

Haz Mat Awareness/Ops need a start date and location

Survival Training need a start date and location

Instructor I 1-17-09

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics  3-1-09

Fire Officer I 5-2-09

Haz Mat TtT Awareness/ Ops need start date and location

Johnson County – had rep Matt Culp

Haz Mat Awareness/Ops need start date and location

Survival Training need start date and location

Fire Officer I need start date and Location

Marion County – had rep Charlie Fadale

Survival Training need date and location

IFD

Instructor I 2-11-09

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics 4-29-09

City of Lawrence

Instructor I need start date and location

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics need date and location

Fire Officer I need start date and location

Morgan County – had no rep

Survival course need date and location

Instructor I need date and location

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics need date and location

Fire Officer I need date and location

Shelby County – had no rep

Survival training need date and location

Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics need date and location

Fire Officer I need start date and location

Handed out the new Instructor form for reimbursement

Also handed out Needs Assessment for each county rep to have each department fill our for the district needs for 2009-2010 budget.

Ivy Tech College is up and running with conducting testing for Firefighter I/II as long as you schedule an appointment and pay the $15 dollar cost to take the test. This is to be all 54 Ivy Tech Colleges.

There is no more infrastructure grant at the current time the Governor has frozen all grants and spending.

Asking all members to writer their Legislators and State Representatives asking to increase funding for fire training grants.

Police in the state have just received a dollar increase to all license plate purchases to fund law enforcement training.

Why shouldn’t we ask for more?

Next Meeting will be held at Brownsburg Fire Headquarters. See web site for date and time.