COLLEGE STATION – Fifty-five new firefighters have graduated from the 151st Firefighter Recruit Academy, sponsored by the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) and held at the Brayton Fire Training Field in College Station. The graduates of the 12-week, hands-on program are from Texas, California, Ohio, Hawaii and Canada.
The graduation ceremony was held Nov. 18 at the Rudder Theatre Complex on the campus of Texas A&M University. Fire Chief David Coatney of Dallas Fire & Rescue gave the keynote address.
The academy prepares entry-level firefighters to earn the ProBoard certifications for Firefighter I, Firefighter II, Hazardous Materials Awareness and HazMat Operations. The program is also eligible for college credit through the Fire Science Technology degree program at Blinn College.
The TEEX academy meets or exceed the requirements in most states and countries for preparation and/or certification of municipal firefighters. TEEX has trained nearly 5,000 certifiable firefighters since 1971 and has graduates working in fire departments all across Texas, the United States, the U.S. Department of Defense, Canada, Australia, Spain, Korea, Kuwait, Finland, Ireland, Brazil and Saudi Arabia.
Learn more about the TEEX traditional or online Firefighter Recruit Academy.