The spring graduating cadets, Classes 28 and 29, of the Firefighter Training Academy at San Jacinto College Central continue a tradition of excellence with 100 percent of the graduating students passing their Texas Commission on Fire Protection written certification exam.

Students at San Jacinto College’s Firefighter Training Academy receive valuable hands-on training. From left, Olivia Paredes, Adrian Dillehay, and Robert Childers collaborated at a recent training exercise staged at the La Porte VFD training complex.

“This makes 12 classes in a row with the 100 percent pass rate,” commented Lynwood Dunseith, chair of the College’s fire protection technology department.

Dunseith says there are two keys to the academy’s impressive history of success — the hard work put in by the cadets and the quality of instruction. “We have a number of instructors who graduated from our academy and almost all of our instructors end up working with the cadets they trained, so they all have a vested interest in the quality of the instruction,” he said.

San Jacinto College Central offers intensive training for anyone interested in positions such as structural firefighters, fire inspectors, fire and arson investigators, hazardous material technicians and fire protection instructors.

Firefighter jobs have become more complicated and demanding in recent years due to the use of increasingly sophisticated equipment. San Jacinto College students train with state-of-the-art equipment, in a high-technology environment which features specialized training equipment.

Because of the College’s tradition of training excellence, employers take note that San Jacinto College graduates are better qualified for entry-level positions. And, veteran firefighters’ chances for advancement can be enhanced thanks to the College’s advanced classes.
San Jacinto College’s fire protection courses fulfill the educational requirements for numerous fire service certifications.

The fire protection technology program also offers professional development courses in important fields, including Technical Rope Rescue - Operations and Technician, Confined Space Rescue, Confined Space Awareness, Incident Management, Terrorism, Fire Extinguisher Training, Airport Firefighting, and many others.

For more information, contact Dunseith by e-mail at lynwood.dunseith@sjcd.edu, or by phone at 281-476-1834. For more information about San Jacinto College, please visit http://www.sanjac.edu/, or call 281-998-6150.