Newsletter June 2015

The CPSE Board of Directors approved a reinvestment plan for 2015 that included information technology research and upgrades. Starting this year and continuing into 2016, CPSE will be researching and procuring multiple IT projects. We are forming a seven-member Technology Advisory Group and are inviting members of the CPSE community to be part of this group.

Group members will be asked to dedicate 1-2 hours per month to review proposals and another 1-2 hours per month for web meetings. IT projects being considered are a website update, automation of the credentialing application, and modification of the self-assessment and peer-assessment process. This group is anticipated to be active through December 31, 2016.

If you are interested in volunteering and have extensive experience purchasing and implementing IT systems, please email Katie Jones, Finance and IT Systems Administrator, kjones@cpse.org, with a letter of interest by July 24, 2015. Selected group members will be notified about a kick-off meeting in mid-August 2015.

The Center for Public Safety Excellence is currently accepting nominations for the following prestigious awards:

• Ronny Jack Coleman Leadership Legacy Award
• Ray Picard Award

We ask that you take time to review the criteria and nomination procedures for each award and think about who you want to nominate.

Ronny Jack Coleman Leadership Legacy Award

This annual award recognizes an individual who holds the Chief Fire Officer (CFO) Designation for their significant achievements and/or contributions to the international Fire and Emergency Service in the following areas:

• Accomplishments (in mentoring and professional development, and can include the credentialing, accreditation process beyond their own agency)
• Initiative (including helping others beyond their own agency through mentoring and professional development, and includes advocacy for the credentialing and accreditation process)
• Technical competence (including serving as an instructor, mentor, peer assessor, peer reviewer)
• Demonstrated leadership and mentoring ability (including advocating professionalism, mentoring, credentialing and accreditation)
• Additional achievements/contributions

Click here to download the award criteria and nomination form.

Nomination packages must be received no later than June 26, 2015.

Ray Picard Award

This annual award recognizes individual superior leadership and outstanding contribution to the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) and the accreditation of fire departments in the following areas:

• Accomplishments (within the accreditation process)
• Initiative (including helping others with the accreditation process)
• Technical competence (including serving as a peer assessor, team leader or instructor)
• Leadership ability (including spreading the word)

Click here to download the award criteria and nomination form.

Nomination packages must be received no later than June 26, 2015.

The award recipients will be formally recognized at the annual CPSE awards ceremony being held Thursday, August 27, 2015 at the Westin Peachtree Plaza, Atlanta, GA.

CPSE is seeking proposals to develop curriculum for the Self-Assessment and Community Risk/Standard of Cover Workshops and has issued an RFP. CPSE is in need of professionally-created curriculum to teach these two workshops to assist fire departments in understanding the components of self-assessment and to help them achieve international accredited status. Interested applicants must prepare and submit all required documents no later than 5:00 p.m. (EST) on June 26, 2015. Applicants should email a cover sheet, project proposal including milestones and costs, and attachments before the deadline to kristow@cpse.org.

Don’t miss one of the upcoming 90-minute webinars explaining changes in the 9th Edition of the Fire and Emergency Service Self-Assessment Manual (FESSAM).

Sign up for a 90-minute webinar at the CPSE website in order to understand the significant changes between the 8th and 9th editions. All registrants will receive a complimentary copy of the 9th edition of the Fire and Emergency Service Manual (FESSAM) when it is published.

The webinar will be instructed by Jerry Nulliner, who led the technical working group that developed the 9th edition. The cost of the webinar is $79. Four identical sessions of the webinar remain. Click on the links below to register for the most convenient session.

• Friday June 26, 2015 2 – 3:30 p.m. ET
• Wednesday July 8, 2015 2 – 3:30 p.m. ET
• Tuesday July 21, 2015 2 – 3:30 p.m. ET
• August 6, 2015 2 – 3:30 p.m. ET

The International Public Safety Leadership and Ethics Institute will honor Ronny J. Coleman, CFO, past Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Commission on Fire Accreditation (CFAI), Inc., inaugural recipient of the Ronny Jack Coleman Leadership Legacy Award, and 2004 recipient of the Ray Picard, as one of their 2015 Lifetime Achievement Awardees. During their 3rd Annual Gala, they will also honor Gordon Graham, one of the keynote speakers at CPSE’s 2015 Excellence Conference.

IPSLEI was formed in 2006 to develop individuals, through innovative leadership and ethics education, who exercise leadership effectively and ethically in service to public safety.

Information about IPSLEI and the gala are available on their website at: www.ipslei.org.

On Tuesday, June 16, the Institution of Fire Engineers Membership Review Panel awarded the membership grade of Fellow to 3 USA members of the Institution:

Chief Todd LeDuc, CFO FIFireE of the Broward County Sheriff-Fire Rescue Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Lieutenant Randy Hanifen, FO FIFireE of West Chester Fire Rescue Middletown, Ohio

Mr. Rick Mason, CFO FIFireE, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation

They join 57 other IFE members in the United States that have been recognized with the membership grade of Fellow for their demonstrated successful leadership and outstanding contributions to the fire engineering profession over an extended period of time.

IFE members who achieve this distinction have typically demonstrated significant individual responsibility, sustained achievement and exceptional professionalism in their careers for a period of more than 15 years. Congratulations!

Nominations for Ray Picard Award – June 26

Nominations for Ronny Jack Coleman Leadership Legacy Award – June 26

Designation renewals for recognition during the
2015 CPSE awards dinner – June 30

FO Scholarship Applications – June 30

Ticket purchase for 16^th Annual CPSE Awards Ceremony – August 10

Baltimore, MD

Register for #‎FirehouseExpo2015‬.

Start Date/Time: Tuesday, July 14, 2015 – 8:00 am Eastern Time
End Date/Time: Saturday, July 18, 2015 – 3:00 pm Eastern Time

Watch this video message from Editor-in-Chief Tim Sendelbach and sign up for this year’s exciting education lineup and special events now: http://firehouseexpo.com

Discover Firehouse Expo. Where Your Training Has Been Upgraded. Learn skills and tactics to take back to your firehouse at Firehouse Expo, committed to providing the most progressive based training and education that current and future leaders need to meet the demands of the ever-changing fire service. Show highlights include:

• 1st Annual Fire-Rescue Competition
• All New Preconference Sessions
• Hands-on Training
• Firehouse Fitness Showcase
• Rip and Run Tailboard Training Sessions
• Fire Family Life Program
• Product Debuts from Leading Fire Service Companies

Special Discover Firehouse pricing applies for Center of Public Safety Excellence agencies and designated officers! Click here for details.

This year’s CPSE Awards Dinner will take place beginning at 6:30 pm on Thursday, August 27 at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in Atlanta, Georgia, during IAFC’s annual Fire-Rescue International Conference. The dinner will follow a networking reception for all dinner guests from 5:30 – 6:30 pm. All Officer Designees and Accredited Agencies that are being recognized in 2015 are invited to the dinner. Invitations are being mailed from the CPSE office in the next few days. A photo session for all Officer Designees and Accredited Agency teams will take place prior to and during the networking reception. Be watching for details to accompany your registration confirmation.

During the dinner, the emergency services profession will once again honor two respected industry leaders when CPSE announces this year’s winners of the prestigious Ray Picard Award and the Ronny Jack Coleman Leadership Legacy Award. CPSE will also announce the winner of its Ambassador of the Year award, recognizing one individual who has done the most to promote CPSE accreditation and credentialing programs throughout the year. But most important, the event recognizes the dozens of fire/emergency officers who have attained various levels of professional designations and all of the departments who have achieved accreditation during 2015.

Companies and fire agencies may reserve private banquet tables for ten for only $1,200 per table. To reserve a table, contact Katie Jones at 703-691-4620, Ext 207.

Registration for the awards dinner is now open. If you received an invitation to the dinner, you may reserve your tickets today by clicking here. Make plans now to join your friends and colleagues for a night of great food and good times.

Note that all ticket purchases must be paid with a credit card. CPSE will not invoice for individual dinner tickets.

by Tim Bradley, CPC Commissioner

There are a couple of things I am confident about in leadership. I am convinced that leadership has to exist at all levels, not just the top. I believe that leaders should stay focused on continuing their personal education and credentialing, because the people they lead are always changing. I’m also convinced that the essence of leadership varies based on who needs to be led to do what? The great advantage to the system of credentialing within the CPC is that it has credentials appropriate to the job. Whether a Chief Officer, Fire Officer, Training, Investigations, or EMS, there is a credential for you if you lead.

There aren’t any secret formulas for leadership. You have to develop the necessary traits, and apply them to the “who needs to be led where” formula. One of the smartest things I’ve read on leadership came from General Norman Schwarzkopf, and that was; “Leadership is a combination of strategy and character. If you must be without one, be without the strategy”. Leaders have to have characteristics such as trust, honor, dependability, or strong and genuine values. They must all lead by example. If you want to example, what better example could you give than to allow a peer assessment of your skills in the form of credentialing?

The terms leader and boss are not interchangeable. You do not have to be a boss to be a leader, nor does being a boss make you a leader. Abraham Lincoln said “nearly all men can stand the test of adversity, but if you really want to test a man’s character, give him power”. Leaders are servants. Leaders have a genuine interest in the views of others. Things such as humility, courage (moral and personal), caring, integrity, and perseverance are the types of things people recognize in the person they want to follow. A leader is mentally tough, because no one can lead without being criticized, and leadership requires tough decisions. Leaders are mentors. They recognize that perhaps the best way to grow future leaders is to mentor folks by showing them good leadership characteristics. Leaders also gain wisdom from mentoring, and never quit learning. Leaders walk the talk. Are you credentialed?

CPSE has several workshops scheduled for the next few months. Register today to reserve your seat at the workshop that meets your needs. Please pass these dates and locations on to your colleagues at adjacent fire departments to help us promote attendance at all workshops.

For course details and registration, go to: www.cpse.org/news/upcoming-workshops-events.aspx.

June 24, 2015
The First Year as a Newly Promoted Chief Officer
E-Delivery

June 26, 2015
The Reimagined 9th Edition Webinar

July 08, 2015
The Reimagined 9th Edition Webinar

July 14, 2015
Firehouse Expo
Baltimore, MD

July 15, 2015
Small Data Sets – Challenges in Measuring Performance
E-Delivery

July 21, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Prescott, AZ

July 21, 2015
The Reimagined 9th Edition Webinar

July 22, 2015
CFAI Peer Assessor Workshop
Webinar

July 30, 2015
Exceeding Customer Expectations
Anaheim, CA

August 03, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Oklahoma City, OK

August 03, 2015
Data Analysis & Presentation
Manassas Park, VA

August 06, 2015
The Reimagined 9th Edition Webinar

August 11, 2015
DoD Only- Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Ramstein, Germany

August 18, 2015
Creating a Perpetual System of Continuous Improvement in the Organization
E-Delivery

August 27, 2015
2015 Awards Ceremony

September 08, 2015
Technical Competency – Writing to Achieve Designation
E-Delivery

September 09, 2015
So You’re Accredited, Now What? How to be an Accreditation Rock Star!

September 14, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Cary, NC

September 16, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Auburndale, FL

September 16, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Mt. Lebanon, PA

September 16, 2015
Data Analysis & Presentation
Marysville, WA

September 17, 2015
Credentialing: A Pathway to Personal & Professional Excellence
Cary, NC

September 21, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Santa Clara, CA

September 28, 2015
Self Assessment and Community Risk/SOC
Cripple Creek, CO

September 30, 2015
Developing and Improving Organizational Professional Development Plans
E-Delivery