A Year-End Message From Larry Sagen

11-30-10 -- Dear Friends and Supporters,

All of us at FIRE 20/20 are excited by the progress of our diversity initiatives this year and the reception we’ve received at all levels of fire and emergency services organizations. As always, we are grateful for your continued support.

In 2010, we delivered eight, one-day and one, two-day Recruiting & Retaining Diversity in the Fire Service^TM (R&RD) pilot workshops. The 361 participants represented 81 fire departments and 1 fire academy from across the United States. Each team included management, labor, and human resources representatives. This was the first time that this level of leadership has worked as a team on diversity and inclusion strategies.

At each regional session, I was impressed and humbled by the commitment of the participants.  The workshops provided an opportunity for two-way learning. All 82 participating organizations left the workshop with an outline for their department's strategic plan for diversity and inclusion, with action items and benchmarks.  Their valuable input resulted in the workshop increasing from one day to two, allowing us to integrate both community panels and interactive best practices discussions. We will be conducting follow-up webinars in 2011 to track progress and provide ongoing support.

In addition to the Recruiting and Retaining Diversity workshops, Fire 20/20 moved forward on multiple fronts in 2010, including:

• Partnering For Prevention™: This research is identifying issues that fire and emergency services face in multicultural and high risk communities (expected completion in December).
• Online presence:  Fire 20/20 unveiled a new website this fall and created a Facebook page to better engage with our stakeholders.
• Mastering Change workshop: The Washington Fire Chiefs Association and Washington State Council of Firefighters partnered with us to deliver training that will aid leaders in responding effectively to a changing fire culture.

FIRE 20/20 is committed to continually improving the training opportunities and resources for departments who understand the value of diversity and inclusion. In response to requests for ongoing training, we will be developing an online version of R&RD in 2011 so that fire and emergency service personnel have access to training and resources 24/7.

We will also be launching the Tony Pini Fire Service Diversity & Inclusion Awards. These will be the first diversity and inclusion awards presented in the history of the U.S. Fire Service.

On behalf of the FIRE 20/20 Board of Directors, Advisors, and staff, I would like to thank the workshop hosts, participants, faculty, partners, and sponsors. Your support makes our work possible. It's a privilege to serve you.

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

Larry Sagen

FIRE 20/20 Executive Director

Posted by: Larry Sagen   Tags: change, Diversity, FIRE 20/20, inclusion, Larry Sagen, Leadership, recruitment, retention, workshop   Categories: FIRE 20/20