By Levertes Ragland
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Copyright 2006 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Isiac Dukes, a battalion chief of the Atlanta Fire Department, proudly watched earlier this month as 38 firefighters from across the country graduated from the Carl Holmes Executive Development Institute.
The event, held at Clark Atlanta University, brought back memories for Dukes as he recalled the integration of the Fire Department in 1963, when 16 black firefighters were hired at Fire Station 16 on Simpson Road under the authorization of then-Mayor Ivan Allen Jr.
Today, the battalion chief says about 60 percent of the department’s work force is made up of minorities and, already, two African-Americans have served as fire chiefs.
For many local firemen, like Dukes, some credit for the new face of the Fire Department in Atlanta goes to EDI, a national program founded 15 years ago by Carl Holmes. Holmes, a retired chief of the Oklahoma City Fire Department, was also one of the first African-Americans hired there in 1951.
Holmes said the institute focuses on preparing minorities as future leaders for the fire service by sharpening their managerial skills. Since its inception, more than 1,200 members of the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters have attended EDI. Of that number, 300 have completed the five-year requirement for graduation. The institute also started including members from the International Association of Professional Hispanic Firefighters several years ago.
Unlike a vast number of their white counterparts, most minorities are first-generation firefighters, Holmes said. He said it’s difficult for candidates not coming from a legacy of firefighters to get the “heads up” on recruitment tests and training. On San Francisco’s test, for instance, one question asked who won the World Series in 1942, said Robert Demmons, associate director of EDI and retired chief of that city’s fire department.
“What does that have to do with your ability?” Demmons said. “If they use that question over and over on the exams then people in the fire department can tell their sons, ‘Well, this is one of the questions.’ ”
The program, which has been held in New Orleans for the past 10 years, drew more than 300 minority firemen nationwide this year. Courses included community-based fire service, how to run a fire department like a business, and emergency management. Said Conley Broome, a graduate and deputy fire marshal for the San Diego Fire and Rescue Department: “This teaches you how to think like a chief officer, as a firefighter, as opposed to waiting ‘til you’re a chief officer.”
Fulton County Battalion Chief John Reed said he’s been promoted three times since attending EDI. “We get top notch education and just about everything you can think of as it relates to the fire service,” said Reed, a 1997 graduate.
Georgia EDI graduates who hold administrative positions include: James Day, a fire captain in the Atlanta Fire Department; David Walson, fire chief of the College Park Fire Department; and Rosemary Cloud, chief of the East Point Fire Department and the first black woman to be named chief, according to EDI.
Bernard Talps of the East Point department was the only Georgian graduating this year. “There are still some disparities in rural areas and in your large areas there are still progressions to be made,” he said. “It’s up to us to do what we can to try to make those changes. That was one of the reasons why I came here to learn different techniques so that I can make it easier for those coming after me.”
Atlanta fire Chief Dennis Rubin applauds the program. The department has one Asian female and one black male in the top administrative positions, with five of six assistant fire chiefs and 12 of 27 battalion chiefs being black males. He said women are the most underrepresented among all groups, but the department is working on increasing their ranks as well.
“It’s critical that minority members and all members prepare themselves for executive education in the fire service,” said Rubin, who has been a friend of Holmes for 25 years.
EDI’s public spokesman, Capt. Edward Campbell, said there are plans to hold the program again next year at CAU.