The Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE) mourns the loss of one of our earliest champions. Chief Brian R. Dean, CFO, EFO, Assistant Fire Chief, (Ret.), passed away on November 20, 2025.
“Brian brought great curiosity and heart to his work. The agencies and individuals he engaged with are better for their interactions with him,” shared Preet Bassi, CPSE Chief Executive Officer. “I will miss him greatly and fondly recall him being among the first to welcome me with open arms into the CPSE community. His emails and texts always ended with the message ‘Stay Safe.’ Let’s make sure we do so in his memory.”
Chief Dean became active with CPSE in late 1990s. Over the last quarter century, he served as an accreditation manager, peer assessor, team leader, mentor, conference presenter, instructor, technical advisor, and, most recently, the Technical Advisor Program Manager. In 2014, he served in a critical role as the process lead for the Reimagining Accreditation Project.
“Brian will always be remembered for his smile, which was almost always present; and with it brought a smile onto everyone else. He was a very delightful person to work with and alongside. He always presented a unique perspective on any issue we were working on at the time and continually brought all his experience and education to the table. He was a great and dear friend, and I will miss him immensely,” expressed Debbie Sobotka, CPSE Chief Operating Officer.
In 2015, Brian was the worthy recipient of the Ray Picard Award for championing the self-assessment and accreditation process that has led to a culture and paradigm shift within the fire and emergency service. Frequently Brian would share “Excellence Never Stops.” This was exemplified in his hope for every fire service member to better themselves through education, professional development, and industry contributions.
Chief Dean’s fire service career began in 1982 as a Firefighter/EMT with the Winter Park Fire-Rescue Department in Winter Park, Florida. When he retired in 2010 as the Assistant Fire Chief for Administration, he had successfully moved through the ranks as an Engineer, Lieutenant, and Battalion Chief. A lifelong learner, he held a M.S. Degree in Leadership from Grand Canyon University, a B.S. Degree in Business Administration from the University of Central Florida, and a A.A. Degree in General Studies from the Valencia Community College. He was a proud graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program and a long-term Chief Fire Officer designee from the Commission on Professional Credentialing.
Chief Dean is survived by his son, Donovan, his extended family of siblings, nieces, and nephews, and his global fire service family.