With a broad range of classes, including fire suppression, human biology, advanced wildland firefighting, anatomy, physiology and firefighting strategies, students who attend Hawaii Community College's emergency medical technician (EMT) training can expect to be prepared to help people in their communities.
EMT training is part of the fire science program.
“The fire science program has been, for the past few years, one of the highest enrolled programs,” said Hawaii Community College External Affairs Coordinator Thatcher Moats. “We have large numbers of students in liberal arts but compared to career-oriented programs, like culinary arts or auto mechanics, fire science has been one of the highest enrolled programs.”
The associate's degree program requires 70 credits to complete, and 12 of those credits involve EMT classes.
“It prepares them to take the national registry EMT test,” Moats told the Ohana Times. “Students who graduate from the program can work with federal, state and local fire service agencies. It's not limited.”
Although a few courses are currently taught online due to COVID-19, the pandemic has not impacted the fire science program significantly, according to Moats.
“Enrollment has stayed steady,” he said. “Firefighters are trained to adapt and that is what we are doing.”
Statewide in Hawaii, there are 21,180 coronavirus cases with 283 deaths, according to the state’s COVID-19 dashboard, and in Hawaii County alone, there are 1,869 coronavirus cases with 44 deaths.
“EMT classes add value for fire services students because a lot of fire agencies want or, in certain cases, require fire professionals to have EMT certifications,” Moats said in an interview.
The additional curriculum was included two years ago in collaboration with Kapiolani Community College (KCC).
“Students do have to take a couple of additional courses to get certified so we've partnered with KCC for the additional courses,” Moats said.
Ninety-eight students were enrolled in the program in 2018, according to media reports. The fire science program was launched in 2005.
“What they can expect in fire services is a really rewarding experience,” Moats said. “It's a helping profession and an appealing profession for a lot of people. We hear about students who have gone on to work in local, state and federal fire service agencies.”