The Poudre School District says 36 high school students from the district's Career and Tech Ed program have completed a new Basic Wildland Firefighter 1 Certification Program. The program is in its first year and is a collaboration with the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention & Control.
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The program includes students from six different Fort Collins area schools. Now, these three dozen students are fully certified to begin a career as wildland firefighters with an entry-level FFT2 wildland firefighters certification. Three of the students already have employment lined up in 2025.
Students had to perform more than 40 hours of classroom training, along with two days of field exercises that included digging fire lines, deploying fire shelters and using engine hoses and pumps.
Wildland firefighters are on the frontline of wildfires and in recent years there’s been an uptick in the need for these specialized crews. Even this past year, the U.S. Forest Service said they were struggling to fill vacant positions across the West. About a quarter of the positions were unfilled at the start of this past summer.
Poudre School District officials say the program will be offered again during the first semester of the 2025-2026 school year. The class was popular enough to have a waitlist this year, so numerous students hope to partake next year.
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Three of the students from the program already found work for 2025. The program comes at a time when there is a need for more wildland firefighters.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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36 students participated in the program and are now certified as entry-level FFT2 wildland firefighters.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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A heavy focus of wildland firefighting includes controlled burns.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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Agencies like the US Forest Service have struggled to hire fire crews in recent years.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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The program included 40 hours of classroom work and additional training in the field.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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The program is helping prepare students for a career in wildland firefighting.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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Three of the students from the program already found work for 2025. The program comes at a time when there is a need for more wildland firefighters.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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36 students participated in the program and are now certified as entry-level FFT2 wildland firefighters.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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Agencies like the US Forest Service have struggled to hire fire crews in recent years.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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The program included 40 hours of classroom work and additional training in the field.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
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Even this past year, the U.S. Forest Service said they were struggling to fill vacant positions across the West. About a quarter of the positions were unfilled at the start of this past summer.
Connor Clark / Poudre School District
