By Keith Upchurch
The Herald-Sun
DURHAM, N.C. — Durham fire officials have been moving aggressively to recruit more minorities and women to join the department, hoping to more closely reflect the city’s racial and gender makeup.
Currently, the department has about 21 percent black firefighters, 4 percent women, 2 percent Hispanic and 1 percent Asian.
Deputy Chief Chris Iannuzzi said the department is working to improve those numbers by sending recruiters into the community and encouraging women and minorities to apply for firefighter jobs.
In the past, similar efforts were made in the weeks before the application process began.
What’s new is that the recruitment effort is taking place throughout the year and expanding to all parts of the community.
“We’re trying to expose these groups to the fact that this a great job,” Iannuzzi said. “We’ve been attending different career events, and we’ve been to NCCU, high schools, the Bimbé Festival, the Latino Festival, and we’ll be at CenterFest (in September) -- specifically as recruiters, so people can ask about what it’s like to be a firefighter.”
Iannuzzi said part of the difficulty in attracting more women and minorities is that it’s often not on their radar.
“It’s not only white men who enjoy doing the job -- blacks, Hispanics, and women enjoy it, too,” he said. “It’s just a matter of them knowing that the job is available.”
The next hiring period begins Aug. 29 and continues through Sept. 23 for a new academy that starts early next year.
Until the applications start coming in, the department won’t know if its recruiting efforts of the past year are succeeding.
“Then we’ll see if what we’re doing is working,” Iannuzzi said. “We know it’s going to take a whole lot to change the stereotype the Fire Department has that it’s all white males.”
But Iannuzzi believes more diversity within the department will come as people learn how rewarding being a firefighter can be.
“If you like helping other people and you want a job where you can gain personal satisfaction just about every day you work,” being a firefighter is a good fit, he said.
More information is available at durhamfd.org by clicking on the “Becoming a Durham firefighter” link. If you have a question or want a recruiter to contact you, send an email todfdrecruiting@durhamnc.gov. You can also visit them on Facebook to learn more about life in the Durham Fire Department.
Copyright 2016 The Herald-Sun